To Save a Malfoy
by SnapeSeraphin
Summary: After Voldemort's defeat, Harry and Ron free a man who has been the Dark Lord's captive for years and place him in Hermione's care. But who is this mysterious man and how will he effect the lives of the Gryffindors and one Draco Malfoy? AU.
1. The mysterious captive

**Disclaimer**: this story is written purely for fun. Harry Potter and everything in his world belong to JK Rowling. No copyright infringement intended.

**AN**. This is my very first fanfic and I have been working on this for almost a year now. This story is brought to you thanks to Poemzie the Phoenix, who convinced me it was good enough to post. I have revised the first chapter, seeing that I hadn't overcome my tendency to make overly long sentences when I started writing this. Sometimes, I still haven't ;-)

I hope you'll enjoy this unusual, but lovely pairing.

On to the first chapter, in which Hermione finds herself another worthy cause in Voldemort's last found victim.

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To Save a Malfoy **

Ch. 1. The mysterious captive.

"Who is this?" the woman in the traditional soft pink robes asked, aghast. The professional distance she, as a trainee medi-witch, was supposed to keep was clearly gone from her voice as she looked at the still form on the stretcher hovering between Ron Weasley and Harry Potter.

The seemingly lifeless body had the dubious honour of being the most gruesome sight she had seen so far. Seeing that she had spent the last week tending to the wounded from the Final Battle that was saying something. In spite of this, she hurried towards the stretcher and motioned for them to bring the man over to an unoccupied bed at the far corner of the improvised hospital wing.

"He is the last one," Ron replied while hurriedly walking along with the stretcher, "we found him in the dungeons below the fortress, naked and chained to a wall. He didn't seem to be conscious and he hasn't spoken or opened his eyes even once."

Harry looked at the man with a rather dangerous gleam in his eye. "We have no idea who he is, but he must have been pretty important: he was buried in the dungeons so deep, that if it hadn't been for Niobe, we would never have found him."

Before the medi-witch could ask who Niobe was, the young man continued: "The Healer from St. Mungo's will not take a look at him, says he won't be wasting his time on someone who's going to die anyway."

"Put him down here," the woman in the pink robes commanded, pointing to the unused bed. "I'll be damned if I don't at least give it a try!"

"I knew you would, Hermione," said Harry quietly.

"Is there anything more we can do?" asked Ron, when the man had been settled upon the bed.

Hermione had moved to the side of her patient, her thoughts concentrating on him. "I don't know, maybe you could stick around for a while..." Her voice trailed off.

The two men settled themselves on the next bed, as the sheet that covered the man's body, was removed. Even though they had already seen the state this particular victim was in, Harry and Ron still felt horrified and slightly sick to their stomachs at the sight.

The woman in the pink robes gasped audibly. Having already guessed that this man was in particular bad shape after one look at the stretcher, she hadn't been prepared for anything close to what she was seeing.

The man was painfully thin; his knees looked disproportionately big in relation to his thin thighs and lower legs that seemed to consist only of bone and skin. His ribs were too visible beneath the skin of his chest, the gaps between them deepening further with the short gasps of breath the man drew at uneven intervals. His upper arms were thinner than her wrists.

Furthermore, his skin was caked in dirt and what was probably blood. At his ankles and wrists, his flesh was bloody and raw, clearly due to being chained to the wall, as Harry had said. The man's hair lay in lank, dirty strands around the face, reaching almost to the waist. With all the dirt and grime, it was impossible to even tell what colour it was.

Not bothering to waste time with cosmetics, Hermione moved her wand over his body, from head to toe, to assess his injuries.

Ron and Harry watched her movements from their spot on the bed next to the stranger's, Hermione's face set in an expression of deepest concentration. She started murmuring spells, waving her wand over the man's chest first. It seemed his breathing eased just a bit after that. She moved on to his thighs and then his upper arms.

Waving her wand over his stomach, she started muttering to herself.

"Gods I've never seen anyone this severely underweight and still live," she said in amazement. "And from what I can make of it, he has been something like this for quite some time..."

"Niobe said he'd been in the dungeons for as long as she could remember," Harry chimed in, "It must have been something close to twenty-five years..."

Hermione looked at him, aghast. "Who would Voldemort have hated so much, he kept him alive for twenty-five years, just so he could torture him?"

Harry shrugged. "Niobe doesn't know who he is. She and her family kept as far away from the dungeons as possible. They could sense the dark magic was strongest there."

Hermione returned her attention to her patient. "I've mended his broken bones for now, but I need to get some nutrients into his system, or he will, indeed die," she said matter-of-factly, having slipped successfully into her professional role at last. "I am going to try and clean him up a bit, see if I can discover where all this blood on his skin came from." She gently pushed a couple of strands of hair back from the still face before turning to Harry and Ron.

"Go and find Professor Snape for me!" she commanded her two best friends, without a second thought, "I think I am going to need his help with this." She didn't even look their way, fully focussed on casting a warming spell to elevate her patient's body temperature. With his current weight, he probably hadn't been properly warm in quite some time.

Harry and Ron, being rather used to getting bossed around by this particular medi-witch, got up to do her bidding. They had brought this last found victim of Voldemort's to their spasmodically single-minded friend for exactly this reason: when Hermione involved herself into something, anything, she did so heart, mind and soul. Woe the witch or wizard that got in her way.

Hermione cast a cleaning charm on the man's chest and discovered extremely pale skin, marred with numerous scars, bruises and relative fresh wounds. She set to work on healing the wounds, some of which had started bleeding again during transport, repeating her actions on his arms and legs.

He looked fairly clean now although 'better' would not be an accurate description. The removal of the grime on his skin seemed to have only added to the deathly-ill impression, having improved the visibility of his extremely skinny arms and legs and the painfully thin torso. The bruises stood out starkly against the snow-colored skin. The man's breathing still didn't seem to come easy, if the painful expansion and lifting of his ribcage was any indication.

Hermione looked at the man with compassion in her now soft eyes. Nobody deserved to be forced to endure what this man had, not to mention for such a long period of time. She seated herself on the bed next to her patient and cast the final cleaning charm, on his face and hair.

She preferred an old-fashioned bath over the cleansing spells, but unfortunately her new ward was in no condition for anything other than a spell. And it worked just as well, she thought, as the grime disappeared from his face, revealing a couple more bruises and what looked like cuts, across his cheeks and down his throat. A whispered spell later and those were healed as well and she leaned back to assess her work.

Hermione was glad she sat down to cast these last few spells. The cleaning spell had not only revealed the man's face, but also the colour of his hair. Stunned, she took in the long strands of blond hair that was so pale it looked like moonlight on the pillow.

The same, silvery-blonde she had only seen on a person twice before in her life. And both of those had been Malfoys.


	2. Not Lucius

**Disclaimer: **Just for fun, no copyright infringement intended.

**AN**: Poemzie: thank you for reviewing!

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To Save a Malfoy 

Ch. 2 Not Lucius

"What exactly were his injuries?" asked a collected Professor Snape.

"Well, he had numerous broken bones: his right femur and tibia, left humerus and scapula, almost all the metacarpal and carpal bones of his right hand and all the metatarsals on both his left and right foot. Furthermore more ribs than I care to count and a fracture of his nose and left cheekbone. His right shoulder was dislocated and there were numerous tears in muscle tissue, what little is left of it, virtually everywhere in his body.

From what I can guess he has not been subjected to curses recently to inflict damage, but rather physical torture, mechanical forces. As you can see his nutritional state is deplorable: I haven't seen anyone this severely underweight before: according to my readings he weighs less than half of what a healthy man his height should weigh. I also think he has some infectious diseases: his breathing is painful and laboured, which probably indicates pneumonia of some sort and his health in general is very poor. Even with the aid of potions I doubt he will be strong enough to survive. The healers didn't even want to give it a try...." She trailed off.

"And you say Mr Potter and Mr Weasley found him in the dungeons below the fortress?"

"Yes. A new snake friend of Harry's led them there. He said that without Niobe, they would never have found him: he was buried in the deepest, darkest hole there was to find, apparently. According to the snake he'd been there for ages, a couple of decades, probably."

"And you have no idea as to his identity?"

Hermione looked at him hesitantly.

"Well, the hair colour is fairly unique, as I am sure you are aware of. But as to his exact identity: we have no idea. We rather hoped you might be of use there, sir."

Severus Snape stared down at the man in the bed, a pensive expression on his face.

"How old would you think he is, Miss Granger?"

"His current condition makes it a bit difficult to guess, but I'd say he is in his late thirties, early forties."

"That would make him about the same age I am," Snape surmised. He was staring at the stranger's face with a most peculiar expression on his face.

"As far as I know, Lucius doesn't have any siblings and none of his cousins have quite that colour of hair," he mused, "Which would lead to the conclusion that, if I didn't know better, this would have to be Lucius Malfoy."

Hermione stared at him in utter shock.

"But that simply cannot be, Professor!" she stuttered. Lucius Malfoy had been captured and was currently awaiting trial. Besides, he had played a rather prominent role these past twenty years, both in the public eye and in Voldemort's inner circle, which made it pretty impossible for him to have been cooped up in a dungeon for the better part of it.

Besides, whatever else could be said of the man, he was generally not in a state of malnutrition.

"I know," agreed the Potions Master, still staring intently at her patients face. "I will need some time to investigate the matter, Miss Granger. In the meantime, I suggest you explain to me how you intend to treat his condition."

Hermione nodded, walking to a small table pressed against the far side of the wall. "If you'd take a look at this, I've prepared a list of potions I think would be very helpful."

* * *

He was having a nightmare again. Hermione had awoken from the low, guttural noises that her patient was emitting. She had been asleep in a chair at his bedside as she had been for the last three nights: she hadn't gotten much sleep. The first night had been fairly uneventful, but because of his extremely poor condition, she had permitted herself with short naps only in between of monitoring his condition.

Professor Snape had been most helpful and expedient in either brewing or procuring the potions she had requested. Unfortunately, the digestive system of her patient had seen so little use in such a long time, that it had turned out to be impossible to orally administer the potions. Again, the Potions Master had been the one to help her out, by processing the active ingredients of the potions into salves, which she could apply to the patient's skin, thus allowing his body to absorb their healing powers. To her relief, this seemed to be working just fine.

His condition had improved marginally and she was rather hoping that in a couple of days, she could again try and see if he could imbibe liquids now that he had strengthened a bit.

Unfortunately, there was no such solution for administering nutrients. Hermione was the one to solve this problem. She had, as usual, looked at all the possible angles and come up with a most uncommon solution. Professor Snape had never seen anything like it before and even the healers, although they still thought her ward was going to die and heartily declared their abhorrence at her 'barbaric method', were fascinated by the Muggle contraption she had chosen to solve the problem.

Snape had watched, fascinated, when her good friend Marc carefully inserted a needle, covered in a blue-coloured Muggle material called plastic, into a vein on the back of their patient's hand. He had drawn some blood from it, making sure it was inside the vein and pulled the needle out, leaving the plastic bit in place. He then proceeded to connect a flexible tube to it, placing a loop of it against the back of the patient's hand, fixing it to his skin with some white tape. The tube in its place was then connected to a bag, containing a Muggle solution of some sort, which, Hermione had assured her former Professor, would contain enough nutrients to keep their patient from dying of starvation. He had bombarded Marc with questions about the use of this most unusual tool the Muggles called a 'drip'.

It was a successful therapy insofar as that it caused the patient's weight to gradually increase. The pneumonia seemed to be receding as well, although there was still the risk of him developing a fever, which at this stage, could easily prove detrimental.

Unfortunately, with the improvement of the weight problem, her patient now had enough strength to be plagued by nightmares. Extremely vicious ones, as far as she could tell, judging by his facial expressions. After that first, relatively uneventful night, the second day under her care had been spent in devising a treatment plan for the following days, conferring with professor Snape and of course, monitoring her patient. Since they did not know who he was and for the time being the man himself wasn't in any position to tell them his name, Hermione had suggested they would make one up for him for now. The name she suggested was Salveo, which meant something along the lines of 'hope'. The Potions Master had merely commented that it was an appropriate name.

Towards the evening of the second day, Salveo had become increasingly restless. Hermione had stood by his bedside, watching him worriedly. She watched his face, as his gaunt features started to contort in what could only be agony. She didn't know for sure, but he seemed to be recalling some of the torturing he was submitted to, his arms and legs twitching, as if he were trying to keep them out of reach of his tormentor. Anxiously, the medi-witch hovered next to him. If he became too agitated, she was going to have to sedate him, lest he did himself harm.

Eventually, she'd had no other choice than to do just that. He had become more and more discomposed, until his trashing, although feeble because of his condition, was causing him to flinch in actual pain in stead of remembered. Her attempts to soothe him with her voice seemed to have been lost on him and as she tried to touch him he'd shrunk back from her as if she had stricken him.

The third day and night had been spent in a similar manner, although fortunately she had been able to prevent him from doing himself further harm.

The drip worked gloriously: although he was still painfully thin, he had managed to gain a little weight and his complexion had improved as well. He seemed to be recovering, albeit slowly. Hermione caught herself being more optimistic about his chances of survival.

Professor Snape came by at least twice a day. Sometimes he would bring new salves, but mostly he just came to check up on Salveo and ask her about his progress. She had caught him staring at Salveo's face more than once the past couple of days. His expression pensive and somewhat troubled.

Not that everybody would be able to see that, but Hermione had worked together with the Potions Master for too long, to not be able to read his expressions a little. At the moment, she had the distinct feeling he was keeping something from her and it had to do with Salveo's real identity.

The young medi-witch had decided that, for now, she would let it be. But one day, in the near future, her former professor was going to have to share his suspicions with her. She wanted to know who her patient was and why he had been submitted to such a cruel fate. A fate which he was forced to relive in his subconscious in his weakened state.

Hermione got to her feet and muttered a charm to cause a soft, glowing ball of light to erupt from her wand, hovering in midair over Salveo's face.

Her heart filled with sympathy at the sight of him in the throws of another nightmare. With a flick of her wand, he was unable to move his arms or legs much, to prevent him from doing himself harm. This, however effective for his body's healing, did nothing for his mental state. If possible, he became even more agitated, the low moaning noises he emitted growing in intensity.

Strangely enough, he only moaned, she had never once heard him speak, no matter how terrible his nightmares were. Not even a single word.

Maybe that was why he didn't respond to her trying to soothe him by talking to him. Maybe he had been deprived of the sound of language for so long, it was lost to him.

Whichever was the case, Hermione automatically murmured soothing words to him, while she waved her wand over him, making sure he hadn't hurt himself. He kept struggling against his bonds, his face contorting in anger and despair. The medi-witch didn't want to keep on giving him sedatives, so her mind searched frantically for a way to reach his mind, rather than numbing his senses. He tossed his head from side to side on the pillow in a frantic attempt to break free, the silvery blond hair spread out around him like a halo of moonlight.

The hair.... A gleam came to Hermione's eye, as an idea came to mind and she once again started talking to him.

"Mr. Malfoy, can you hear me?" she spoke softly next to his ear. The effect was immediate and dramatic: he instantly stopped his trashing, literally mid-movement, his features expressing his surprise. Soon, the surprise gave way to suspicion and he once again started struggling against the invisible restraints she had put on him.

"Sssh.... It's alright. I do not want to harm you, Mr. Malfoy," she spoke gently, watching his face closely for his reaction. "You are safe here. You have been freed and brought here." He was still struggling, but not as desperately as before. "I am a medi-witch, Mr Malfoy, and I have been watching over you for these last four days. You were very gravely injured and I need you to keep calm, so you can heal properly."

Her voice was gentle, washing over him in a soft cadence and, oh wonder, he seemed to have calmed down a bit.

"Now," Hermione said, "I am going to release the bonds that I have placed on you, to keep you from hurting yourself. I need you to keep calm. Do you understand me, Mr Malfoy? If you move about too much I am going to have to restrict your range of movement again." Her explanation was given slowly, in hopes of him grasping what she was saying and in the same soft and gentle tone of voice she always used when addressing severely ill patients. She waited for a couple of seconds, studying his face, before waving her wand over his body once more, releasing him.

To her utter amazement, he remained still. Maybe he was unconscious again.

"Mr Malfoy, I am going to take hold of your hand," she told him. She let her fingers slip around the hand that was resting on the bed beside him. It felt warm now, in contrast to what it had been when he was first brought in.

"Now, Mr Malfoy," she spoke again softly, "can you squeeze my hand for me?"

She didn't really know what to expect. Whenever she had tried this before, he had either been in too bad a shape to notice someone touching him, or panicked the moment she had tried. So when she felt his frail, skinny fingers curl around her hand, her heart jumped in pure joy and tears sprang to her eyes.

"Very good. Thank you, Mr Malfoy," she whispered her approval. She gently squeezed his hand in return in a comforting gesture: everything was going to be alright, she was certain of it.


	3. An old memory

**Disclaimer:** the one from the first chapter still applies....

**AN**: **shyngr8** – thank you so much for reading and reviewing my story! I am honoured you think it is wonderful. As to your question: I have no idea yet. Although I don't think Lucius has a twin, to be honest.

Anyway: here's another chapter. Somehow I don't seem to be able to stop writing. My screensaver-Lucius has been looking very sternly at me, since I am horribly neglecting a project I should be doing for uni. I think I am going to have to spend some time on that, since he has threatened to walk out of my screen....

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To Save a Malfoy

Ch. 3 An old memory

"Miss Granger, I think you should see to it that you get a couple of hours of sleep," Professor Snape remarked, as he caught her hiding a huge yawn behind her hand.

Hermione stubbornly shook her head. "I am just fine. Besides, it is a far too exciting time to sleep," she said, her eyes shining.

Professor Snape moved to stand on the other side of the bed and raised an eyebrow.

The young woman considered this an invitation and started telling him what had transpired during the night. When she was finished she looked at the Professor questioningly.

"Well? What do you think?"

"It is a very good sign indeed that he responds to verbal commands now. I was beginning to fear he might have some sort of cognitive damage as a result of the malnutrition. This is certainly a step in the right direction," Snape commented evenly.

Hermione waved an impatient hand at his comment. "I know that," she declared, "but what about the name? He clearly responds to the name Malfoy."

"Yes, that is rather puzzling."

"Puzzling? With that kind of hair, I don't think it is a big surprise he's a Malfoy. The question is, which Malfoy exactly?"

The potions Professor threw an exasperated glance in her direction. "Well, yes Miss Granger, as usual you have succeeded admirably in stating the obvious."

Hermione smiled at this comment. How many times had he told her that before? As a student she would have been devastated, she had been devastated, but now, as a young woman, she was not so easily intimidated by the sarcastic man.

"Since you are beating around the bush, Professor, you don't really give me much of a choice, do you?" she remarked calmly. "Don't you think it is time you tell me what you have been keeping from me these past few days?"

His dark eyes intently gazed into her soft brown ones. Hermione held his gaze, her expression determined. Finally the dark eyes swept down to study the face of her patient again, as she had seen him do so many times now. When after some time, his gaze lifted to meet her eyes again, she knew he was going to answer her question.

"As I told you before, to my knowledge Lucius has no brother," he began.

Hermione nodded.

"And his cousins are not quite this particular shade of blonde."

Silence for a moment, as he once again studied the face on the pillow.

"Of course, there could have been a sibling I never knew about or a cousin that did manage to be born with the exact same colour of hair...."

The medi-witch waited patiently for him to continue, meanwhile staring at Salveo's face herself.

"Yet, I think both of those highly unlikely. And what has been bothering me ever since I first lay eyes on Salveo..." he hesitated for a moment, "is that there is something familiar to his face, beyond the obvious I mean... And every day as I come here and his condition improves ever so slightly, that feeling becomes stronger and stronger."

The obsidian eyes were once again focused on Hermione.

"Do you know where you recognise him from?"

"Frankly, Miss Granger, I haven't got a clue. It feels like it's a memory almost forgotten, a very old one...which would make sense, seeing the man has spent some twenty years in Voldemort's captivity." he stared through the window, deep in thought.

"You never saw him, when you were..." she trailed off, uncertainly.

Snape looked at her sharply, before replying evenly: "No, Miss Granger, I didn't."

The young woman nodded, absently pulling on her wrinkled robes in a futile attempt to make them more presentable. This attracted the attention of her Professor to her state of dress.

"Miss Granger, judging by the look of your robes, I'd say you haven't taken the time to properly sleep, eat or dress ever since you started taking care of Salveo. I demand you go and sleep for a couple of hours, have a decent meal and a good shower," he said in a tone of voice which made it clear the subject was not open to discussion.

Hermione opened her mouth to protest, but he silenced her with a graceful gesture of his hand.

"I will hear no arguments on the matter. I will keep an eye on your patient and when anything of importance happens, I will be sure to send someone to get you. But for now, I am ordering you to take some rest. You will do him no good when you're dead tired."

A small smile came to her face as she conceded his point with a slight bow of the head and without further comment, she handed him the notebook in which she kept track of Salveo's condition and gathered fresh clothes and robes, put some toiletries into a small bag and left the room with a quiet 'thank you' to the black-robed man sitting in her chair next to her patient's bed.

* * *

Much as she hated to admit it, Hermione had to concede Professor Snape had been right. After three hours of undisturbed sleep, a good, long, hot shower, scrubbing her skin and washing her hair thoroughly, she felt like a different person.

As she stepped into Salveo's room her robes were once again impeccable, her hair pulled back neatly and the colour back in her cheeks. The Potions Professor looked up at her entrance from where he was sitting next to Salveo's bed and Hermione thought she saw the briefest flicker of approval on his stern features. It was gone so quickly she almost immediately began to doubt it had been there in the first place.

But, the Professor was not the person that interested her most at the moment. With ill concealed eagerness, she walked to her patient's bedside, to check up on him.

"He has slept without incident all the while you were gone," Snape reported softly.

Hermione nodded, looking at Salveo's face. It was tranquil, indeed and his complexion had improved another notch from the greyish tint it had been when Harry and Ron had delivered him to her.

"You are doing well, Mr Malfoy," the medi-witch told her patient. "I am glad you have not been plagued by your nightmares for a little while; you need your rest." While she spoke, her fingers gently probed the faded bruises in his face.

"He has nightmares?" Snape asked.

Hermione looked over at him. "Yes," she said, nodding. "He appears to be reliving whatever torture they put him through." Her voice was soft, compassionate as she pulled back the covers to examine the bruising on his chest and abdomen.

"That is hardly surprising," the Professor answered, his voice strangely filled with emotion, almost choking on it. Hermione could kick herself when she heard it. Of all the unthinking.... The Potions Master must know exactly what it was like to have nightmares like that. Without thinking, she placed her hand on his shoulder, in a silent gesture of understanding. Her former Professor didn't acknowledge the gesture, but he didn't shrink back from her touch either, allowing what he had denied himself for years.

She finished checking up on Salveo's bruising and reapplied the salve. From the looks of it, the bruises would be gone in another day. By the time she was finished, her patient's skin had cooled and she quickly pulled up the blankets.

"He seems to be doing well, Miss Granger," Snape commented.

Hermione looked at him, beaming. "He does, doesn't he? I think he will be al right after all."

Snape smiled wryly. "And he will have you to thank for it, Miss Granger. You refused to give up on him."

Hermione blushed profusely at the unexpected praise from a man who was very selective in giving it. Nevertheless, she waved the comment away impatiently.

"Nonsense. He owes as much to Harry and Ron, who brought him here and to you for brewing all those salves to help him heal."

"All of which would have been in vain, if you had not seen a possibility which the Healers themselves didn't see. If it hadn't been for you, he would have died. Whatever the faults of Mr Potter and Mr Weasley," Snape smirked at this, "they do know whom to ask for help."

The young woman looked at him, indignant. "I can't believe they didn't even give it a try! It is the least they could have done!"

"Miss Granger, you have to understand, with all the casualties at the moment, the Healers have to decide who is most likely to survive. And frankly, I didn't give him much of a chance myself."

It was silent for a while after that. Hermione made some notes in the journal she used as Salveo's chart. Finally, she turned back to the potions master.

"I am going to do some tests, maybe if you'd like to stay?" she asked. He merely nodded and positioned himself nearer to the bed, so as to get a good view.

"Mr Malfoy," Hermione started, again in that gentle voice of hers she seemed to reserve for those in her care. She took his right hand in hers.

"Can you squeeze my hand?"

Like the night before, the thin hand in hers curled itself around her fingers. Hermione smiled. "Very good, Mr Malfoy." She switched hands.

"Now squeeze my other hand," she asked. Again, he did as he was told, this time with his left hand.

"He does seem to be responding well to the Mr Malfoy," Snape commented. Hermione turned to face him.

"It was just a hunch. I thought I'd give it a try and see what kind of response I got. It seems to have pulled him out of his confinement. I never succeeded in getting his attention before that."

"I think it is very important to try and find out more about what he responds to. I dare say it has been quite some time..." he trailed off most uncharacteristically.

"Professor?" Hermione queried, frowning. Automatically she turned her head in the same direction he was staring at... and met the gaze of two grey eyes. For a moment she was too stunned to speak. But it didn't take her long to come to her senses. She was, after all, Hermione Granger.

"Mr Malfoy," she said softly, seating herself next to him on the bed. Obediently the silvery gaze shifted to her face.

"I am very glad to see you awake. How are you feeling?"

The man on the bed stared at her, his brow contracting, as if thinking was slow and difficult. He frowned, looking at her questioningly. What was strange was that he made no attempt to speak.

Hermione started talking to him again. "You must be very confused. Don't worry though, you are safe here, we are going to take good care of you."

Without thinking, she put her hand on his forearm. His reaction was as violent as it was sudden: he yanked his arm out of her reach, his eyes narrowed in suspicion, his breathing fast and irregular.

The young woman immediately felt annoyed with herself. 'Good thinking Hermione! You know he scares too damn easily!' she chastised.

"I am sorry; I didn't mean to startle you." She held out both of her hands, for him to see. "It's okay. I am not going to hurt you." She held his gaze, the suspicion in his eyes lessening not a bit.

"I am not going to hurt you," she repeated, "you are safe here. You are at Hogwarts. Do you know Hogwarts?"

He was still watching her every move, but he relaxed a little at the mention of Hogwarts. Hermione decided to just keep talking.

"My name is Hermione, I studied here myself. The last couple of months I have been studying to become a medi-witch." She gestured to the pink robes she wore.

"Professor Snape here has been helping me care for you, by preparing healing salves," she explained.

For the first time since she had called his name, his gaze shifted from her to Snape. In an instant the suspicion was replaced by utter shock and to their surprise he murmured something.

"What did he say?" asked Snape, his voice raspy and at the same time silkier than she had ever heard it.

Hermione frowned in concentration. "It sounded like Fizzwizzle or Fitzwizzle or something like that."

"Fitzwizzle," Snape repeated his face utterly astonished.

"Professor? Are you al right?" Hermione asked. She watched in concern as Snape took a step closer to her patient and in a solemn gesture held out his hand to the man on the bed.

Silver eyes locked on obsidian ones, a thin hand was extended and grasped in the Potions Master's elegant one. The young woman watched in fascination, while both men seemed to have forgotten she was even in the room.

Finally, Severus Snape opened his mouth to speak. And when she heard his words, Hermione Granger was grateful once again that she was already sitting down.

"It is good to see you, Lucius."


	4. The Truce

**Disclaimer**: you read the other chapters, didn't you?

**AN**. **Poemzie**: thanks once again for reviewing. I have a sneaking suspicion you are slightly prejudiced in my favour, but I really appreciate the sentiment all the same. And I love you dearly for it.

**Shyngr8**: thank you for worrying about my university education: screensaver-Lucius most heartily agrees with you ;-) I am afraid between the two of you, I am going to have to listen. Nevertheless I am seriously pleased with your review (does happy-dance) every time I post another chapter, I find myself looking forward to your reviews. This really is addictive! Couldn't someone have at least warned me, before I got myself into this? Anyway, I couldn't resist posting another chapter, just for the joy of reviews... please indulge me!

(Okay, small note here: I love the word 'indulge'. Every time I read it or write it down, I hear Alan Rickman saying it...gods does that man have a delicious voice... If you have no idea what I am talking about, go and see Sense and Sensibility and watch carefully as Colonel Brandon explains to Elinor why he rushed off the day they were supposed to have a picnic!)

Just a general question for whoever feels compelled to answer: what rating do you think this story should have at the moment? I rated it 'R' just to be on the safe side, but I have a feeling the rating's a little too high for now.

Anyway... I'm getting side-tracked here. Please review! Indulge me! (ooh, did it again! _swoons_)

* * *

To Save a Malfoy 

Ch. 4 The truce

Hermione knew her lips were moving, but there was no sound as she looked from one man to the other.

"What...? How...? But..? I don't..." she managed very eloquently.

Neither of the men seemed to hear her. Professor Snape's gaze was fixed on Lucius' face, the strangest half-smile Hermione had ever seen on his own. The man in the bed seemed more at ease than she had yet seen him. Although he was still very weak, his eyes had a gleam to them that hadn't been there before. The medi-witch, still sitting on the side of the bed, was trying to come to terms with the fact that her surly Potions professor was convinced that her patient was Lucius Malfoy. The Lucius Malfoy that had been involved in Death Eater activities over the last fifteen years, the Lucius Malfoy that she had met in Diagon Alley in Flourish and Blotts at the beginning of her second year, the Lucius Malfoy that had been captured and was awaiting sentencing.

Looking at her patients face, she supposed there was a resemblance between him and the man she had come to known as Lucius Malfoy. The differences between the two would probably be all but eradicated the moment her patient had regained some weight. Merlin knew the hair wasn't something one came across with regularity. And although she had not been so close to the other Lucius as to be able to judge the exact colour of his eyes, she had been almost literally nose to nose with Draco often enough to see that there was a great resemblance between -his- eyes and her patient's.

Draco.

Now there was another complication. Draco Malfoy, much to everyone's surprise, had come back for his sixth year at Hogwarts a changed man. When he had entered the compartment Harry, Ron and Hermione had been occupying on the Hogwarts Express, all of them expected insults, a brawl. Harry and Ron had been surreptitiously checking their wands and Hermione had felt on edge immediately. To their utter surprise, he had asked in an even voice if he might sit down for a moment.

Harry had narrowed his eyes at him and snapped: "What do you want, Ferret?"

The pale Slytherin had considered that an invitation apparently, for he stepped inside their compartment, closed the door behind him and sat down, casting a Silencing Charm for good measure.

Of course, by then he'd been staring at both Harry's and Ron's wands, pointed straight at him. Malfoy had merely smirked at them, laying his own wand on his lap. Within easy reach, but it was down nonetheless.

The two Gryffindors had exchanged a glance. "I repeat: what do you want, Malfoy?" said Harry.

By then Hermione had figured she's better step in, before her two overeager friends would get themselves expelled. "Where are your sycophants, Malfoy? Aren't you afraid if you leave them to their own devices for too long, they'll start thinking for themselves?"

Hogwarts second-best student had turned to face her, one raised eyebrow and a smirk showing his amusement. "I left them with a pile of cauldron cakes and told them not to eat them, Granger. That'll keep them busy until I get back." The remark was casual, dry, reminding the Gryffindor girl of their prank with the Polyjuice Potion and the drugged cake in their second year. She almost snorted, before narrowing her eyes at Malfoy. Did he know something he wasn't telling them?

"Look," he'd said, leaning forward, his elbows resting on his knees, "I have not come here to have wands pointed at me or to discuss Crabbe and Goyle's IQ, however entertaining that may be. I want to offer a truce."

"And what makes you think we'd accept a truce from a backstabbing Slytherin like yourself?" Ron of course.

Malfoy had smirked again. "Glad to find there are some constants in the universe."

"Why do you want a truce?" Harry.

"Let's just say I have been doing some thinking and I concluded some alterations were in order."

"But why?" Harry again.

"Does it matter?" the blond young man had asked, "I am offering you the opportunity of a truce, do you really need to know why?"

"As a matter of fact, we do Malfoy. We don't trust you," Harry, through gritted teeth this time.

"And you shouldn't," the Slytherin had grinned, "Just accept the chance I'm giving you."

"You're giving -us- a chance? Now that's undiluted Malfoy arrogance if I ever saw it! You're the one that came to us!" Hermione had burst out.

"Exactly. And we're not falling for your plan whatever it is, so you can go and tell the other Slytherins they should've sent someone who'd be more convincing than you!" Ron cut in heatedly.

"Do you see any other Slytherins?" Malfoy'd asked, for the first time loosing some of his calm demeanour "do you think I go around casting Silencing Charms because I need the practice? Better yet, in the past five years, how many times have you seen me without Crabbe and Goyle outside of the Quidditch pitch?"

His arguments were about to be discarded by Ron and Harry, but Hermione had been turning things over in her mind. She had noticed the change in his attitude before he had stepped into their compartment: he hadn't insulted any of them or called her Mudblood even once that day, in spite of ample opportunity. She was puzzled by it, but for as far as she, or anyone for that matter, could tell, he seemed to be utterly sincere. For a Slytherin at least.

"What harm is there in giving it a try?" she'd asked.

"Finally," Malfoy muttered.

She'd fixed him with a glare. "Don't think you have won me over, Malfoy! I will be watching your every move!"

"I'll be sure to pass your sentiments on to Dumbledore when I have a talk with him later," Malfoy had answered haughtily. As he had undoubtedly anticipated, the Headmaster's name caused a stunned silence.

"You're going to talk to Dumbledore?" Ron asked, stunned.

"That's what I just said, wasn't it?" Malfoy rolled his eyes.

"Eventually you are going to have to explain to us exactly why you are doing this," Hermione had said, once again stepping in before the boys got into a full-blown sparring contest.

Malfoy had looked her calmly in the eye and even though his cool grey eyes gave no indication of his thoughts, for once the sneer on his face was absent. The girl absently noted that when he wasn't looking at her as if she was something that had just crawled out from under a rock he wasn't half bad-looking. And besides, it wasn't as if they were suddenly declaring themselves best friends. They were merely suspending the hostilities.

After a moment's consideration she held out her hand to him.

"Truce."

He shook hands with her. "Truce."

She raised an eyebrow at the two boys on the opposite bench. They glanced at each other and shrugged.

"Oh, what the hell..." said Ron, with an expression as if he had just agreed to become Percy's personal assistant.

"Stranger things have happened...." muttered Harry, looking as if he wasn't so sure.

But they placed their right hands on Hermione's and Malfoy's.

The Slytherin got up after that, turning to Hermione before releasing the Silencing Charm. "Thanks, Granger." Hermione felt her own face forming a smirk that would have done Malfoy himself proud at the thought of him thanking her. His calling her Granger was proof of the subtlety in which the Slytherins lived: no first name, because they were by no means friends, but she supposed it was a lot better than being called 'Mudblood'.

As he slid open the door, Harry asked: "This is not going to change anything at Quidditch, is it?"

"Hell no!" Malfoy smirked.

"Good," Harry said, "I'd hate to loose the only bit of decent competition I have."

To the Gryffindors' amazement, the Slytherin grinned at that and said something that sounded suspiciously like: "Likewise, Potter." as he slid the door closed.

After that they'd never gone back to being enemies. Oh sure, Draco had still been an insufferable arrogant git at times, but... well... he was still a Malfoy, wasn't he? And of course Ron and Harry found enough reasons to get into arguments with the Slytherin. Hermione had found herself more than once yelling at the pale boy, infuriated even more by his obvious amusement of her annoyance. There'd been more than one occasion she'd been sorely tempted to hex the arrogant smirk off his face. And even though they still didn't know his reasons for the sudden change of heart or trust him a very great deal, their truce was not broken, much to the surprise of everyone.

That had all changed though, when one night had found Ginny knocking urgently on Hermione's door, telling her Harry had asked her to come to their dormitory as fast as she could. Worried, Hermione had complied immediately, thinking Harry or Ron was in some kind of trouble. Nothing had prepared her for what she actually found, though. Harry was sitting on the edge of his four-poster bed, while Ron was anxiously pacing at the foot. At her entrance, Ron stopped in his tracks and Harry looked up at her. "He didn't want to go to Madam Pomfrey," he said, an apologetic tone in his voice. As Hermione walked towards the bed, she saw that there was one more person in the room: on the bed lay Draco Malfoy and from the looks of it, he was unconscious. It turned out the Slytherins were not too happy about Draco's decision to make a truce with the Gryffindors and they made their sentiments known in a decidedly non-Slytherin way; a group of them had been waiting for him as he finished practicing his flying and beat him up. Harry and Ron, in a most extraordinary coincidence had been studying the Marauders Map at that very moment, as they were planning an unauthorized trip to the kitchens. Apparently Draco had been adamant about not going to the hospital wing, so they'd brought him with them to Gryffindor tower under the guise of the Invisibility Cloak. Hermione had applied her considerable skills to heal his bruises, cuts and broken bones and the three of them had managed to keep him in the Gryffindor dormitory for the night and keep an eye on him, without the other Gryffindor boys noticing that Ron did very little sleeping that night or seeing the impression of the weight of another two people on Harry's bed the following morning, as Hermione and Draco sat waiting under the Invisibility Cloak, till they could leave the dormitory unseen and go to Dumbledore.

Like the troll incident, it had proven to be an experience one cannot go through together without becoming friends; especially since they found out that night, that their truce and the Slytherins' rage were brought on by the same fact: Draco Malfoy had switched sides. He had chosen the side of the war that placed him exactly opposite the people he had considered his peers for most of his life and his own father. As Dumbledore had put it, it was bravery worthy of a Gryffindor, but only feasible to a Slytherin.

And now his life might once again change drastically. Because the man who had been his father for the last twenty years, might not actually be his father. As Hermione looked at her patient's face once more, she knew she had to have some evidence at least, before she could even think of telling Draco about their suspicion. And of course Dumbledore would have to be informed.

But first things first: she had to go and find Harry. She had a favour to ask of him.


	5. Musings

**Disclaimer**: no copyright infringement intended.

**AN**. Okay, another chapter. This story just keeps on coming. I'm wondering when I'll get stuck with writer's block... well, not just now, it would seem ;-)

**Shyngr8**: well, I can report I will be spending most of my day tomorrow in the library, working on the school project I mentioned. So, that leaves me some time to update on my story! I totally get your point on being addicted to reviews! First thing I do in the morning, is turn on the computer and check my mail! ;-) Thank you so much for your wonderful review; keep that up and you'll never have to demand for an update ;-)

**GeekGoddess1**: I am very pleased you like the story! Here's another chapter, feel free to review anytime ;-)

**Pallas Athena1**: you like my story! (squeals). As a fellow Lucius/Hermione writer, this means a lot to me. Hope you like this chapter as well!

**Midnight Lilly**: do you mean me or the story by that comment? I will have you know I am NOT little! ;-) Anyways, thank you for reviewing.

**Jo**: thank you for reviewing and calling my story original. I think that is a very nice compliment!

I am so honoured all you guys like my story! I got the idea for it when I was pondering how to make Lucius more approachable without the story losing credibility, which you must admit is pretty hard. It is lovely to hear from all of you that you like the concept and think it is original.

I am already severely addicted to reviews, so I hope you will continue to indulge me.

Well, on with the show!

* * *

To Save a Malfoy 

Ch. 5 Musings

Hermione sat quietly in the corner of the room, scribbling away in Lucius' file by the light of a candle. It was dark outside and most people in the castle were asleep already. With all the sleep she'd been missing these last couple of days, she should be in her bed as well, but as always, she couldn't leave before all of her work was finished. Besides, there was something else she still needed to do.

As she finished the last sentence in her patient file, she closed it, put her quill and ink away and stretched the aching muscles in her back.

A quick glance over her shoulder told her that her patient was still asleep and there was nobody else in the room. Turning back to her desk, she pulled an old and tattered piece of parchment out of her pocket, unfolded it and placed it on the desk.

"I solemnly swear I am up to no good," she whispered, giving it a tap with her wand.

Immediately, the familiar map of Hogwarts started to appear on the parchment. The young medi-witch looked for the little spot labelled 'Hermione Granger' and found it with little effort in a room occupied by two dots. She took a deep breath as she saw the name next to the other dot. Professor Snape had been right. For there, as clear as day, was the name Lucius Malfoy.

Hermione wiped the map, folded it and put it back in her robes. Harry wanted it back as soon as possible. She got up from her chair, stretching once again as her muscles protested loudly at the movement. Picking up the candle, she walked over to the other side of the room and put it down on Lucius Malfoy's bedside table. She checked up on her patient with the ease and routine of some practice. To her satisfaction, he was sleeping peacefully for a change.

For the first time since he'd been brought in, he had been able to imbibe some liquids that day and Hermione had greatly enjoyed helping him have a sip of tea. Ever since his recognizing Snape, he seemed to have decided she was trustworthy and he didn't scare as easily.

His complexion was steadily improving and resembled the pale, almost translucent quality of his son's more and more each day. Even relaxed, in his sleep, there seemed to be some arrogance in his features. But maybe that was just because Hermione had just confirmed professor Snape's suspicion of him being Lucius Malfoy.

She could hardly believe it: the man she had saved when everybody had thought he would undoubtedly die was Lucius Malfoy. The man she had hated with a passion from the moment she had learned of his attitude, whose arrogance was horrible to her, whose uncompromising hatred of all things Muggle was disgusting, whose blind prejudice had almost ruined the life of his son and countless strangers, that very man was the one lying in the bed next to her, looking as innocent as can be in his sleep.

Except that the man lying in the bed, was not the man who had done all that. This man, the real Lucius Malfoy confirmed by the Marauders Map, had been a captive of the same evil creature that the world at large thought he was serving. Too bad his evil twin was not being held at Hogwarts, or the map may have shed some light on -his- real identity. Whoever he was, it changed nothing about the fact that Hermione needed to get a whole new perspective on Lucius Malfoy. She knew nothing of this man and yet his face elicited so many feelings, especially now that he had gained some more weight and was starting to look more like himself... well...sort of himself, anyway.

And tomorrow, she was going to have to tell Draco. The Potions Master had already spoken to Dumbledore and they had decided to keep the information quiet for now.

The room, in which Lucius lay was warded, keyed to allow entry only to a small group of people. Dumbledore wanted to allow him time to recover first and of course there was Draco to consider. Since Hermione was the principal healer caring for his father and she and Draco had formed quite a strong bond, she had asked the headmaster to be allowed to deliver the news to him herself. The old wizard had agreed.

If it was hard for her to see anyone else than the man she had hated for years as she looked at this Lucius Malfoy, how difficult would it be for Draco, who had lived with the impostor for Merlin knew how many years and had believed him to be his father for most of his life? Hermione knew it would be hard on him and she honestly didn't know if this was to be a story that would end well. Whatever was going to happen, it was out of her hands. All she could do was stand by and watch and support her friend to the best of her abilities.

The headmaster had decided though, that Narcissa Malfoy was to be kept in the dark about all of this, until they knew more of the circumstances, leading to this extraordinary situation.

Her musings were interrupted by a soft sound, coming from the bed. She was sitting in the chair next to it, her feet curled up beneath her. The candle on the bedside table had long since burnt down, while she sat musing about Draco, a book open on her lap, not having read a single word. Hermione cast a gentle LUMOS MINIMUS, illuminating Lucius' face on the pillow. From the expression on his face, he was having another nightmare. Too bad professor Snape thought his stomach was still too sensitive to be able to handle a dreamless sleep potion.

Hermione sat down on the bed next to him, taking his hand in her own and rubbing it gently.

"It's alright, Lucius. You're safe. They can't harm you. It's okay. Just rest," she spoke softly.

His face contorted in anguish and he started muttering under his breath. Hermione couldn't make out what he was saying, apart from the occasional word, but his tone of voice varied from angry to pleading and from contemptuous to terrified.

His breathing quickened and no matter what Hermione tried to get through to him, he wouldn't calm down. She had taken hold of his shoulder, in an attempt to keep him down and from tossing and turning too much.

"Please..." he pleaded.

"Shhh, it is al right."

"No..." he breathed, his head rolling form side to side on the pillow, "please don't take my son..."

Hermione wondered briefly when he had said those words and to whom, but it was of little consequence now. He was getting more and more agitated and she needed to calm him down.

She firmly gripped both of his shoulders, pinning him down onto the mattress.

"Lucius," she said urgently, "Lucius, it is all right. You are safe, they cannot harm you."

He struggled against her hold, still muttering "No!" and pleading with her.

Hermione was getting worried about the urgency with which he spoke. Apparently whatever he was reliving in his nightmares, it was very important to him.

"My son..." he breathed again and twisted his shoulder in an attempt to free himself of her grip. With a vigour she hadn't anticipated, he swung his arm against her shoulder and managed to throw her off-balance, almost knocking her over the side of the bed.

She managed to catch herself, with one hand planted against the wall next to the head of the bed, but in doing so momentarily lost her grip, quite literally, on her patient.

He managed to wrestle himself free of the now feeble grasp of her other hand and pushed himself upright, still muttering, pleading and uttering threats under his breath. Hermione took hold of his upper arm and as he struggled against her once more, she saw no other alternative than to pull him against her own body, her arms wrapped around him, to keep him from moving about and doing himself harm. She could still feel his ribs beneath the nightshirt he was wearing. Even though his condition had improved, he was still much too thin.

"Shhh," she soothed her mouth close to his ear, "you're safe, Draco is safe, it is all right." She kept repeating this mantra, unconsciously rocking gently, her right hand rubbing his back in soothing strokes.

"Draco..." Lucius repeated his voice somewhat hoarse. His body had relaxed gradually over the last couple of minutes.

"That's right, sweetie, Draco is safe," Hermione mumbled, unaware of her term of endearment. Carefully, she disentangled herself from him and lowered him back onto the bed. She conjured up a damp cloth and as she turned back to face him, his light grey eyes were staring at her in apparent confusion.

She smiled at him reassuringly. "You had a nightmare," she explained as she wiped his forehead.

He nodded, swallowing. Apparently he remembered what it was about. His next words confirmed that.

"My son..." he said, his voice still rusty. Hermione nodded, but didn't speak. She wanted to try and find out what he remembered. She pushed some strands of hair that were plastered against his forehead from his face. Lucius let her. Somehow that felt about as special as being able to touch some kind of wild animal, without it snarling at you.

This man had gone through so much these past years that it was not even remotely possible to imagine what his life must have been like. The fact that after a mere week she was allowed to touch him, felt like an enormous accomplishment. Right then, at that precise moment, the old Lucius Malfoy, the impostor was disentangled from this man and the young woman was able to see them as two separate people.

"They wanted him..." Lucius told her softly, a desperate look in his eyes.

"How long has it been since you saw him?" she asked softly.

The man in the bed pushed himself a little higher up against the pillows.

"I don't know," he said, his voice little more than a whisper, "I have no idea how long I have been in that hellhole." He shuddered. Hermione placed her hand over his and squeezed gently, her eyes never wavering from his. Somehow that seemed to help him.

"He can't have been more than half a year of age, when I last saw him," he continued. "I remember when I held him in my arms, his grey eyes so brilliant, so much life in them... he was beautiful." His voice had gotten a distant quality, almost dreamy as he remembered his little son. Hermione couldn't help but smile while at the same time she felt her stomach churn in the realisation that this man had missed some twenty years of his son's life.

Lucius had been staring at the far wall, in thought, but suddenly he turned his gaze back to her. "It was that image I held onto when He came for one of his... visits." He visibly choked on the last word, his fingers contracting reflexively under Hermione's own. The medi-witch remained silent, letting him determine what he wanted to disclose of those visits for now.

After a minute or so of silence, he resumed talking again.

"It must be at least ten years..." his eyes suddenly settled on hers with interest. "Do you know my son?" he asked.

The young woman nodded, a rebellious curl escaping the bun at the back of her head in the process.

"We were in the same year at Hogwarts," she said quietly, an apologetic tone in her voice.

Her patient paled visibly. "But..." he started, "then he must be, what? Twenty?"

"Twenty-two," Hermione supplied.

Lucius shook his head in bewilderment. "That cannot be! It cannot have been that long!" he turned to look at her pleadingly, as if he wanted her to tell him it was not true.

The girl looked at him with sympathy in her eyes. "I am sorry," she said softly.

He brought a hand that was trembling visibly up to his face, covering his eyes for a moment. Then he raked his hand through his silvery hair, his eyes darting from left to right around the room, his expression one of shock.

Anxiously the medi-witch watched as he tried to come to terms with what she had just told him. Maybe it had not been wise to tell him already. It might have been better to let him figure it out on his own.

No, that would not have worked. Draco would probably want to see his father as soon as possible and obviously he would have to be informed of his son's approximate age before that happened anyway. And no matter how long she waited in telling him, he was going to have to find out sometime.

Those thoughts did nothing to lessen the sympathy welling up in her heart, though. She wished there was something she could do to help him deal with this.

As if reading her thoughts, Lucius stopped his almost frantic movements and looked up at her once again with a pleading look in his eyes.

"Can I see him? Is he here? Do you know where he is? Do you think he'll want to see me?" the questions came tumbling out one after the other in a breathless manner.

"Lucius, Lucius, calm down! He doesn't even know yet that you are here. I wanted to have at least some confirmation that you really were who you appeared to be, before I go and turn his life upside down," Hermione explained.

"Of course," he replied his gaze fixed on the blankets, but sounding rather forlorn all the same.

Hermione bent forward a little, so she could look him in the eyes.

"I will talk to him tomorrow, Lucius, I promise. I will tell him you are anxious to see him," she said.

He nodded his approval and a grateful look graced his features. It was strange, thought Hermione, to see so many expressions on a face she only knew as an emotionless mask.

"Do you know him well?" he asked after a moment of silence.

Hermione smiled. "I think so, yes."

"Would you tell me about him?" he sounded eager, pleading and desperate all at the same time.

"Of course, tell me what you want to know."

"I don't know. Everything, I guess."

Hermione smiled again. Thinking she sat back a little. What could she tell about Draco Malfoy?

"Well," she started, "he is quite handsome; as a matter of fact, he looks a lot like you. Or at least, he will once you have gotten rid of this grunge look of yours," she smiled again.

"Grunge?" Lucius asked, confused.

"Never mind," Hermione said, "Wait, I might have a fairly recent picture of him here somewhere."

She got off the bed and plucked her bag from the floor and started rummaging through it. Finally she produced the small book she had been looking for and pulled out a wizarding photograph from between its pages.

She conjured another light with her wand, the softly glowing orb floating above Lucius head. She seated herself next to him on his bed, her back against the wall at the head and held out the picture to him.

It had been taken after graduation and it showed Harry and Ron pulling a struggling Draco out of the picture frame, while Hermione stood watching, laughing at their antics. After a couple of moments, Draco managed to escape from the other two boys and sauntered back over to Hermione and nonchalantly threw an arm around her shoulders. Hermione laughed at him and Harry and Ron moved back into the picture, rolling their eyes at the other two, before moving to stand on either side of Hermione and Draco, clapping him none too gently on the shoulders. It was the middle of winter and the landscape was covered in snow, their cheeks red with the cold. Draco was clearly recognizable as the only Slytherin in a crowd of Gryffindors by the colours of their scarves. The four of them finally took the time to smile and wave at the camera, before the loop began again and Harry and Ron dragged Draco from the picture once more.

Lucius studied the picture closely.

"My son has befriended Gryffindors?" he asked, curiosity in his voice. Hermione immediately felt annoyance at his remark. Of all the things he could deduct from the picture, it was the fact that they were Gryffindors that seemed most important to him.

"Yes, he befriended Gryffindors, is that a problem?" her voice was sharper than she had intended and Lucius looked up from the picture, startled.

Hermione immediately regretted her unthinking remark.

"I'm sorry. I am afraid I've heard that particular remark one too many times over the years," she apologized.

Lucius turned back to studying the picture of his son. "I just thought it was curious Slytherins and Gryffindors would tolerate one another long enough to become friends. In my time you would have been each other's nemesis."

"We were, for our first five years at Hogwarts," Hermione smirked, a habit she had inherited from Draco.

His father turned to look at her, one eyebrow raised in question. In that particular instant he reminded her of Draco so much, she fell quiet.

Gathering her wits about her again, she explained: "On the Hogwarts Express at the beginning of our sixth year, he steps into our compartment and offers us a truce, bold as can be. Mind you, we had been enemies and at each other's throats for as long as we had known each other, so it took quite some guts to do what he did. Not to mention the sheer confidence he managed to exude while he was offering his former archenemies a truce without explaining why."

The corner of Lucius' mouth turned up a little at that and she saw a glint of pride in his eyes.

"So why did he offer you a truce?" he asked.

"Well, it turned out that during the summer holidays, Draco had decided to switch sides."

"Switch sides?" Lucius asked, puzzled.

"In the war against Voldemort," Hermione clarified. Immediately, she realised her mistake and she gasped in apprehension as she looked at her patient. He had gone quite pale and the photograph fell from his trembling hands. His face that had had such a relaxed expression for the last day or so was once again contorted in anguish.

"Oh Merlin, Lucius, I am so sorry," Hermione whispered. Without thinking about it, she flung her arm around his shoulders, as she would have done with his son. Pulling him against her in a sideways hug, she felt his whole body was shaking and she mentally kicked herself for her stupidity.

"I'm sorry," she repeated. "I am so used to saying that name out loud, I forgot."

Lucius drew a shuddering breath in an attempt to calm down a little.

"Tell me he was fighting against..." he faltered for a moment before continuing, "against Him?" the question was asked so softly Hermione was not sure he had actually said it until he raised his head to look her in the eye again.

Hermione made her expression as open as possible as she returned his gaze and said slowly and with certainty in her voice: "He did. He was instrumental in the downfall of You-Know-Who. And the decision to switch sides was made all on his own, against the views of most of his peers and the express wishes of his own father. Or at least who everybody believed to be his father at the moment."

After that it was silent for a long time. Hermione just sat there, next to him, her arm still around his shoulders. She felt that the shaking began to subside and his body was relaxing once again. At some point her hand had started stroking the soft hair cascading down his back and not long after that Lucius' head slowly fell to the side, ending up against her shoulder.

For the second time that night, the woman in the pink medi-witch robes eased him down onto the bed. She pulled the blankets up around him and put the picture on the bedside table, for him to find the next morning.

Another wave of her wand and in the room there was nothing but darkness.


	6. Discussions

**Disclaimer**: nope, still not JK Rowling on Polyjuice trying to live the life of the ordinary Muggle SnapeSeraphin ;-)

**AN**: Ok, I wanted to explain my M.O. to the lot of you. I am about three to four chapters ahead of you as I post chapters to this story. Your questions are a wonderful help in determining what I should pay attention to and if I have left out anything important. So to all my reviewers: thank you so much for taking the trouble to drop me a line! Please keep it up, it is a great help to making this story as good as it can be!

**GeekGoddess1**: well, I really care about my Lucius too. I am afraid he has a couple of things to work through, before he can have his happily ever after though!

**Merryday**: So glad you love the story. Next chapter; coming up! Thanx for reviewing!

**Shyngr8**: Ah, my faithful reviewer! Of course you can keep Lucius! Too bad he isn't mine ;-) I will be revealing what happened to him, of course, but it will only be small bits at a time (yeah, yeah I'm dragging it out: so sue me!) ;-)

Oh and on my coursework: I can report I spent 5 hours in the library today working on a paper and had a wonderful discussion about the works of Shakespeare (too bad I study medicine and not English literature ;-))

**Midnight Lilly**: Of course, Narcissa will not be too happy about being kept in the dark. You are going to have to wait a couple of chapters though, before she comes into the story: Lucius has some people to meet and I have things to explain first!

**Storygirl2009**: wow! I almost made you cry? That is great! I am honoured my humble writing is able to do that. I must warn you though, if chapter five made you want to cry, then maybe chapter seven will succeed: major drama coming up there! Thanks for reviewing! Feel free to repeat the gesture ;-)

Ok, enough babbling for now: on with the story!

* * *

"Granger!" 

"Malfoy!"

A couple of people that happened to pass the entrance hall at the moment of Draco Malfoy's arrival glanced anxiously at the pale Slytherin and the brown-haired Gryffindor.

"What is so damn important you have me showing up here at the crack of dawn, Know-it-all?" the Slytherin drawled, pulling off the scarf that was around his neck.

"What's the matter, Ferret, did I interrupt your beauty sleep?" asked Hermione mockingly.

The students that were walking by slowed down and hovered to the side, wanting to watch the argument unfold.

"As a matter of fact, you did. Do you think it is easy to look as good as I do?" the silvery-blond wizard replied, sounding annoyed.

Hermione huffed, but after only a couple of seconds she burst out laughing.

"Really, Draco, will you ever change?" she stepped forward to give him a hug.

"Why change what already is perfect?" he asked, wrapping his arms around her. He leaned forward to whisper in her ear: "Can you let go of me now? You're ruining my reputation of being a heartless bastard!"

"Oh come on, nobody has fallen for that for years!" Hermione pulled back to take a good look at him, "You look tired, though."

Draco indeed had circles underlining his eyes and unless she was very much mistaken he had lost some weight.

"Don't we all?" he muttered, falling into step beside her, "You look like you could use a couple of hours of sleep yourself."

Hermione grimaced. "You'll understand once I have explained why I asked you to come here."

"So, tell me what this important news of yours is?"

"In a moment," Hermione replied as she jogged up the familiar staircases, leading him to the part of the castle that had been in use as a temporary hospital ever since the battles between Light and Dark had caused more casualties than St Mungo's alone could handle.

Draco merely raised his eyebrows at her unwillingness to discuss the matter right away and followed her silently.

Hermione opened the door to a small office for the medical staff and gestured for Draco to take a seat. She closed the door behind them with a pretty sturdy Locking Charm and then proceeded to cast a Silencing Charm.

Draco once again raised his eyebrows at her. "Paranoid, are we?" he remarked.

Hermione plopped down in the chair opposite his, next to the small fire. She shook her head wearily.

"What I am about to tell you is classified information. At this moment, the only people who know about this are Professor Dumbledore, Professor Snape, myself and to a lesser extend Harry and Ron. It is of the utmost importance to keep it that way for now. I trust what I am going to discuss with you will not leave this room."

The last statement was added, not as a question but as an established fact, since she had trusted on his discretion countless times before. Knowing this, the Slytherin only nodded.

"Do you want some tea? It's a long story," she asked.

"Please."

She conjured a tea tray and some biscuits and sat back in her chair.

"I strongly suspect the matter I'm about to disclose to you will be rather disturbing news. Please let me just finish first, I promise you I will answer any and all questions you have afterwards as best I can," the young woman said.

Draco looked up from his teacup in surprise, but knowing Hermione was not one to exaggerate, at least not on matters that were unrelated to schoolwork, he settled back in his own chair.

"Go ahead," he said.

"You may have heard that after the fall of Voldemort, it was discovered that the fortress in Normandy where the Final Battle took place, was used by him from time to time as a prison. Apparently he kept people captive there whom he considered traitors to his cause and to whom death would be considered a too easy way out."

Draco nodded.

"After the Final Battle had been fought, Harry and Ron, along with others, volunteered to search the fortress, to see if there were still prisoners there. They managed to find and free five people all in all and the search was about to be called off, since all the dungeons had been searched, when Harry was alerted to the presence of one more prisoner, buried deep down in the caves on which the fortress was built. A snake by the name of Niobe guided him to this prisoner's cell. What they found there was too gruesome for words. Suffice it to say, that when they brought the man here, the healers declared that he was a dead man anyway and they wouldn't waste their time on him, as they so delicately put it." Once again, her anger at her 'colleagues' seeped into her voice.

"Refusing to give up on him, they brought him to me and I have been able to successfully treat him for most of his injuries, with the help of Professor Snape. The problem is, at first we had no idea who he was. He was covered in grime and blood when Harry and Ron delivered him to me and all they had learned from Niobe is that he had been there for ages. After I treated his most serious injuries, I performed some cleaning spells and that's when I discovered a rather... distinguishing trait." She looked up here, to see Draco listening intently to her story.

"This man had a hair colour I had seen only twice before in my life. On you and your father," she said quietly.

Draco sat up abruptly at that, the teacup wobbling dangerously, before he took it and placed it on a small table next to his chair impatiently.

"Who...?" he started to ask.

Hermione took a deep breath. There was no other way to do this then just tell him outright.

"We have reason to believe this man is your father, Draco."

Draco looked at her disbelievingly. "My father?" he asked, "How could that be? You say this man has been a captive for Merlin knows how long and my father very clearly has not. On what evidence do you base this assumption?"

Hermione willed herself to stay calm. She felt sorry for her friend and could well understand his confusion, therefore she should stay as calm as possible.

"Well, the first clue was the hair, of course. I have never seen anyone but a Malfoy with that particular shade of blond hair and Professor Snape informed me Lucius has no brothers and that his cousins don't have the same outward appearance."

Draco conceded the point with a small bow of his head. His face was an unreadable mask, but his grey eyes were swirling with emotion.

"Furthermore, the first time I managed to get through to him, was when I addressed him as 'Mr. Malfoy'. Then after a couple of days, he regained consciousness when Professor Snape happened to be in the room. He recognized him and called him 'Fitzwizzle'. Professor Snape has informed me since then, that that was a particular nickname of his, which only Lucius used while the both of them were at Hogwarts as students. Professor Fitzwizzle was their Potions Professor and from what I understand completely incompetent. Knowing Severus was an adept at Potions himself, Lucius called him Fitzwizzle to tease him. According to Professor Snape no-one else knew of this nickname...Well, you know the inner workings of Slytherin politics." She shrugged and paused in her story-telling here, to look at her friend again.

"Is that it?" asked Draco, "not very much to go on, is there?"

Hermione nodded. "That's what I thought. I didn't want to go and turn your life upside-down without at least one piece of more or less objective evidence. So I asked Harry for the Marauders' Map."

At this, Draco looked up, a glint of curiosity in his eyes. "The Marauders' Map?" he asked.

Hermione pulled the old piece of parchment out of her robe pocket and unfolded it. Draco leaned over eagerly and looked up at her in confusion when he discovered it was completely blank.

Before he could say anything, Hermione started explaining: "It is a map of Hogwarts, with all its secret passageways and hidden entrances. There are places on this, which even Filch doesn't know about. Furthermore, it shows you the exact location of everyone in the castle and what is more, it cannot be fooled by Concealment or Glamour Charms, Invisibility Cloaks, Polyjuice Potion or other kinds of magic that can be used to hide one's true identity."

"Sounds fascinating, Hermione," Draco started, "but I don't see a thing."

Hermione smirked, despite the gravity of the situation. "Patience, my friend, is a virtue."

She pulled out her wand.

"Seeing as this map was created by four notorious troublemakers and has proven a very useful tool to several students since then, the Weasley twins to name a couple, you will understand a treasure like this should be well protected against accidental discovery by one of the teachers."

The blond man sitting across from her didn't say anything; he merely raised an eyebrow as if to say: 'Well? Get on with it!'

The pink-robed woman smiled smugly as she revealed one of the Gryffindors' last secrets. Tapping the map with her wand, she said clearly:

"I solemnly swear I am up to no good!"

Draco snorted in amusement at the incantation, before the map claimed his attention. He looked in amazement as the lines crawled across the parchment, drawing the familiar and not so familiar parts of Hogwarts castle.

"I have heard of these kinds of maps, but I never before actually saw one," he remarked as he watched the tiny dots move around on the map. "This is marvellous! What I wouldn't have done to have my hands on this when I was a student here!"

Hermione grinned at that. "Well, how do you think we always knew exactly when Snape was about to round the corner?"

The Slytherin looked up at that, understanding and mirth glittering in his eyes.

"I must admit you had me wondering how a bunch of Gryffindors were better at predicting Snape's moves than myself. It has annoyed me to no end for years!"

"I'm glad to assuage your Slytherin sensibilities then," Hermione smirked, "I can only imagine the horror you must have felt at being out-Slytherinned by a couple of Gryffindors."

"You have no idea," muttered Draco darkly, watching the map again in fascination.

"Even Peeves is on the map!" he exclaimed a moment later.

"Of course," Hermione said. "Everybody inside the castle or on the grounds is on the map." As she was studying his face, she could tell exactly when he spotted the dot with his father's name next to it.

"So you really think this man is my father?" he asked softly, serious once again.

"I do, yes," said Hermione.

"How long has he been a prisoner?"

"He told me the last memory he has of you is when you were about half a year old."

Draco's head jerked up at that. "You've got to be kidding," he said, disbelief once again etched on his features.

Hermione felt the same sympathy she had felt for the father well up in her heart for the son. "I am afraid not."

"But that would mean..." he trailed off, uncharacteristically hesitant

"It would mean you haven't seen your real father since you were a little baby and the man you have come to known as your father has been an impostor for all this time," the young woman said what he could not.

The man sitting opposite her shook his head in bewilderment, the pale blond hair reminding the medi-witch strongly of her patient.

"This simply cannot be," he repeated.

Hermione got up from her chair and squatted in front of his. "I know this is very difficult to understand, Draco, but you know that I would never tell you something like this unless I knew it to be true for certain, don't you?" she said, concern for her friend evident in her face as she grabbed his hand in hers and squeezed it firmly.

"But he does remember me?" Draco asked, looking down at her worried face.

"Frankly, I think the memory of you is what kept him from going insane all these years," she answered softly. Unbidden, she remembered Lucius' nightmare from the night before and she wondered if it would be a good idea to tell Draco about that. She decided to compromise.

"He had a nightmare, yesterday. I had to wake him up and he asked me if I knew you. I told him that I did and he begged me to tell him something about you. Of course, I proceeded to tell him you are devilishly handsome – at least he smiled weakly at that – and gave him that picture of the four of us after graduation, in the snow, remember?"

Draco nodded.

"Anyway, he is very anxious to see you, Draco. I promised him I would tell you that, when I saw you."

The young Slytherin pulled free from her grasp and buried his face in his hands, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

"Granger, you came up with one hell of a reason to drag me out of bed this early in the day," he mumbled from behind his hands. He heaved a sigh and moved his hands back, tousling his hair. He fixed his gaze on her anxious, brown eyes again.

"Do you think he is ready to see me now?"


	7. Expectations

**Disclaimer**: not in the mood to make up a good one... read the previous chapter!

**AN**: **Midnight lilly**: my, my you are a feisty one. I am glad Lucius' welfare is so close to your heart. I will take good care of him, I promise!

**Lil kawaii doom**: thank you for your generous review. Eloquent... I like that :-)

**HoVis**: I get the picture. Thanx for the wonderful compliment. I am not planning on quitting this story just yet. ;-)

**Jay**: thank you for reviewing, I am glad you liked it!

In general: please, please let me know if you like the story. If you read it and you like it, please hit the review button and drop me a line. If you have constructive criticism, or questions about the story, that's fine too! It only helps me to make it as good as I possibly can.

Anyway, this is probably going to be the last update in a little while, seeing that I have an exam coming up and a couple of projects to finish in the next two weeks. Don't worry though, I am not going to abandon this story; just put me on author alert!

So: I turned up the drama in this chapter, big time! Seeing that you are going to have to wait a while for the next update, I thought it would be nice to have resolved at least some things for our poor Lucius. Storygirl2009, maybe you should get some tissues ;-)

Enjoy.

* * *

To Save a Malfoy

Ch. 7 Expectations

"Is he here?" Lucius asked anxiously the moment the pink-robed young woman stepped into his room.

Hermione walked up to his bed and smiled warmly.

"He is," she confirmed.

"And is he... I mean, will he..." He looked at her with equal parts hope and dread.

"He is waiting outside for me to come and get him. I was just going to come and see if you were ready."

Uncertainty etched on his face, Lucius brought up a hand to touch his hair. That morning, he had asked for Professor Snape to help him getting ready. His hair had been washed thoroughly and cut to just below his shoulders. It was gathered in a neat ponytail at the back of his head with a silver satin ribbon, gleaming softly in the gentle light of morning. He had insisted on being allowed to sit in a chair rather than stay in bed when his son came to visit him.

In an unusual display of understanding, the Potions Master had somehow gotten hold of a set of dark-green robes, with modest silver patterns adorning the fairly simple garment. Lucius was wearing them now and brought his hand back from his hair to start fiddling with the hem of his robe.

"Do you think I look okay?" he asked, not daring to look up at her.

Hermione thought he looked more than okay. Now that she saw him in decent robes, she understood for the first time why people had always thought that Lucius Malfoy was a handsome man. Without the perpetual sneer and the cold look in his eyes, he really was handsome. A bit skinny, still, all right, but the aristocratic features began to show through. And she didn't know any other person that would be able to make the nice, but fairly common robes he was wearing look simply majestic. But Lucius did.

Before she could say anything, though, a snort sounded from the corner where Severus Snape stood, watching.

"Really, Lucius, I already told you: you look just fine!" he said, amusement in his voice.

The man sitting on the edge of the bed cast an irritated glance at his old friend. "And I already told you: I want to make a good impression!"

Turning serious, the dark-haired man pushed himself off of the wall and sat down beside his friend.

"Compared to your evil twin, you'd have to try very hard to make a bad impression," he said.

"Was he that bad?"

"Worse," Snape commented succinctly. "But that is not important now. Your son is waiting outside to meet you and if I know him well, and I do, he is trying to decide at this very moment whether or not to knock on the door instead of waiting for Miss Granger to come and get him."

Hermione smiled at the panicked response that got from Lucius. He got up as fast as his condition allowed and with his friends help, walked the small distance to the chair.

She already turned to go and get Draco as Lucius' voice once again sounded.

"I really look good?"

The medi-witch walked over to her patient and knelt in front of his chair as she had done not half an hour ago with his son.

"Lucius, you look very good. Don't worry. I doubt that is what Draco will be paying attention to anyway." She squeezed his hand in reassurance and kissed his cheek getting up. One more smile and she was gone from the room.

Lucius turned to face Severus, who was standing behind his chair, but before he could even draw breath, Snape interrupted him: "Merlin I'd have thought you would grow over that obsession with the way you look once you got a little older. You are just trying to postpone the inevitable, Luci!"

"You know I _hate_ being called 'Luci', Severus," the pale, blond man snapped.

Severus laughed again and placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Don't worry, Lucius, you always were much prettier than I."

Meanwhile, Hermione had stepped out into the hallway to find Draco with his hand raised, about to knock on the door. Thinking of Snape's remark, she burst out laughing.

An annoyed look crossed Draco's face at this most unwanted response.

"Care to tell me what is so damn funny?" he snapped.

Hermione quickly checked her laugh and didn't respond to his somewhat caustic remark. Looking at her friend, who was rather paler than usual at the moment, it was fairly obvious he was nervous.

"I'll explain to you later. He is ready to see you now," she said.

Draco took a deep breath and looked at her, doubt written all over his face.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?"

Hermione nodded. "I must warn you though; he is still underweight and rather pale. An ordeal like his is not something even magic can heal in a week's time."

Draco nodded in understanding.

"Let's go then."

Hermione turned back to the door and opened it. As she stepped inside, she thought she heard Snape say something along the lines of: "...worry, Lucius, you always were much prettier than I."

The moment the two men heard the door, their attention focused there. The medi-witch took Draco by the hand, as the room's wards were not yet keyed to let him in and he needed physical contact with her to be able to enter. She pulled him inside and closed the door.

Draco took a few steps inside, then his pace slowed and he came to a halt only a few feet away from the door. His gaze was fixed on the man sitting in a chair next to the fire. He took in the man's Slytherin coloured robes, the silver-blond hair, so similar to his own, the thin hands clasped firmly together in the man's lap. He noticed the paleness of the skin, different from the normal Malfoy paleness, betraying the man's recent ordeal and maybe his current nervousness. At last, his gaze settled on the grey eyes.

Hermione remained in the background as the two Malfoys looked each other over. She imagined what it must be like for Lucius to see this young man stand before him and know it was the same boy he had held in his arms the last time he saw him. Now, Draco was at least as tall as his father with his six foot two and he was lean and muscular. His hair was shorter than his father's and he tended to have a rather sexily-messy hairstyle that Hermione was convinced he had copied from some Muggle magazines. She suspected it was also a way to detach himself from his father, whose hair was always meticulously groomed. His choice of robes showed this as well: in contrast to the elaborate and expensive robes his father preferred to wear, Draco's robes were deceptively simple, although probably no less expensive. The simple elegance suited him very well, since his features were striking enough to get everybody's attention. His confidence combined with his good looks and excellent choice of clothing made sure Draco Malfoy got more than his fair share of attention from the opposite sex... and of the not-so-opposite sex as well. Looking at this young man and knowing him to be his son, must make Lucius very proud.

As she turned her attention back to her patient, she saw his silver eyes were glistening with unshed tears and he was clasping his hands together forcefully in an attempt to hide the trembling. Severus Snape stood like a great shadow behind his chair, in his ever-black robes, in silent support. Hermione felt her own throat constrict and her eyes begin to water as she watched the scene in front of her.

On the outside, Draco appeared to be completely calm. Both Hermione and the Potions master knew him well enough to know, though, that he was anything but calm. Nevertheless, the appearance of composure was very helpful in this instance.

Finally, Draco released some of the tension that had been building inside of the room from the moment he had entered. He bowed his head in an old-fashioned gesture of greeting.

"It is an honour to meet you, sir."

Lucius bowed his head in return. "You have no idea how long I have waited for this moment, how many times I feared it would never come..." His voice was rough with emotion and the last part of the statement was choked, leaving him unable to speak for a moment. Yet his eyes raked over his son's figure as Draco confidently crossed the room to sit in the chair across from him.

"Hermione tells me you have been through quite an ordeal," the younger Malfoy commented calmly, his voice even.

Lucius gathered his composure and nodded. "Yes, I have."

"How are you now?" Draco looked at the other man with a critical eye.

"Thanks to the excellent care of my medi-witch and my old friend, I am doing much better, thank you," Lucius replied gracefully.

"I don't think you could have gotten better care if you'd been treated by the Supreme Healer of St. Mungo's," his son agreed.

"I know for certain part of my treatment - at this he looked at his left hand, were the strange Muggle tubes were still taped against his skin – is unknown to any Healer I have met so far."

Draco glanced over at Hermione, before he edged forward in his chair to take a better look at the strange device. "I bet this is one of Mione's inventions," he commented, "What is it?"

Lucius held out his hand a little, for his son to see.

"I am told it is some kind of Muggle contraption called I.V. or drip. A hollow canule made out of plastic is inserted into a vein with the aid of a needle, which allows the Healer to administer medicine or nutrients directly into the blood. I am not a big fan of anything Muggle, but since I was in such bad shape I wasn't able to digest any food, I am told it saved my life," Lucius explained.

At this Draco looked up in wonder at Hermione. "You fed him through this?" he asked, awed.

Hermione nodded, a little amused at his astonishment at something that was nothing extraordinary to any common Muggle.

Draco turned back to face the other man again and for a moment silence reigned. Apparently he had made up his mind about something, because he began speaking once again.

"Hermione and Severus are convinced you are my father," he said, the tiniest tremor in his voice.

Lucius swallowed with obvious effort and could do nothing but gaze at his son's eyes and nod.

"I was also informed that your last memory of me was when I was only a small infant."

"You cannot have been much older than half a year of age," Lucius replied, his voice barely more than a whisper.

"You are aware that someone else has taken your place and pretended to be you for all the years you have been gone?" Draco's voice was still fairly even, although the tremor was more audible now.

"I understand this must be very hard for you... Draco," Lucius began, savouring the chance to say his son's name, "I really don't expect you to fall in my arms... that would hardly be becoming of a Malfoy."

A corner of Draco's mouth turned up at that last remark, while Hermione tried to determine whether or not it had been a joke. "Of course not," he confirmed.

"All I am asking of you is that I could get to know you. I understand completely that you will need time to... adjust to these most extraordinary... circumstances. And of course you will need proof of my identity. Furthermore we need to find out who has been taking my place for all these years. As long as these matters are unresolved it will be next to impossible to accept what Severus and Miss Granger have been telling you."

Lucius took a shaky breath after this long speech and looked down at his hands, clasped together in his lap once more.

"I just want to spend some time with you... get... to know you..." he hesitated for a moment. "If you'd be so kind as to let me." This last statement was uttered so softly, Hermione almost doubted she had actually heard it. Draco, however, seemed to have no such doubt.

"I'd like that," he said, a pensive expression on his face. The young Gryffindor narrowed her eyes at him. He was thinking about something, she knew it for certain. She had seen that look on his face too many times not to know what it meant.

At that moment Snape put his hand on Lucius' shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze. Hermione saw her silver-haired friend didn't miss the gesture.

"Maybe it is time to bring in some refreshments," the Potions Master remarked in the mildest voice she had heard from him in a long time.

The two Malfoys agreed and Hermione drew up two more chairs as her former Professor summoned a house elf and instructed it to bring them a tea tray and some cake.

After the elf had brought him what he had asked for, they were soon all settled around the fire, teacups in hand.

Draco and Lucius were still studying each other, but the atmosphere was more relaxed now. Draco, for one, sat back in his chair and drank his tea with obvious enjoyment.

Lucius sat studying the young man opposite him, his own teacup all but forgotten in his hand.

Severus Snape and Hermione Granger exchanged a glance, both not entirely at ease with the highly personal events they were witnessing. He offered her some cake, which she gladly accepted, if only to have something to occupy her hands with. If she hadn't been so uncomfortable herself, it would have been rather entertaining to see the normally stoic professor so ill at ease.

At last, Lucius seemed to remember the cup of tea he was holding and he brought it up to take a sip. Due to his still weakened condition and the enormous emotional strain of the meeting however, his hand shook so badly, the tea threatened to spill and he was forced to put it down again.

Hermione's medi-witch instincts kicked in and she was about to offer him to help, when Draco put his own teacup aside and got up from his chair. The young man took the few steps that brought him next to Lucius' chair and knelt down in front of it, its occupant watching his movements with something very much like disbelieving wonder on his face.

Draco's young, strong hand wrapped itself around Lucius thin, trembling one. Hermione could see him visibly react to his son's touch.

"Let me help you with that," Draco said, a warm quality to his voice that had not been there before. After only a moment's hesitation he added: "Father."

The next moment, the teacup shattered on the ground; it had slipped from Lucius fingers as his son enveloped him in a hug with his strong arms and he could do nothing but grab hold of him with despair as the tension of the last couple of days finally erupted. His bony shoulders were shaking with the heaving sobs that wracked his body and his thin fingers clawed at the back of his son's robe in his need to hold onto him.

Draco had put his head on his father's shoulder and silent tears were coursing down his own face, as his hands moved over Lucius' back in soothing movements of their own volition, while he held on for dear life.

"It's okay," he whispered, his voice cracking with emotion. He pulled his father even closer. "It's going to be all right," he promised.

Lucius pulled back a little, to be able to look at Draco, never releasing his hold on him. He looked at the red-eyed, tear-streaked face in front of his, knowing his face must look about the same. His voice was filled with emotion as he said the words that seemed to sum up what was most important to him.

"My son."


	8. Questions

**Disclaimer**: I'm only toying with them. When I'm done I'll return them to JK, I promise.

**AN**. Okay, so I'm not quite done yet and I know I said I wouldn't update in two weeks and they're not over yet, but… well… what can I say? I can't help myself ;-) Since I _am_ a couple of chapters ahead of you guys and the next chapter I'm writing is beginning to take shape, I thought I might as well give in to temptation. All my projects are done but one, so I have a little room to breathe.

**Geekgoddess1**: thank you so much! I love this review, also because you wish me luck with my projects. It helps: really it does. So, I updated a little sooner, just to please you ;-)

**Shyngr8**: well, you will find out who the impostor is, but I guess his identity will only be revealed in chapter 12 or something like that. I'm writing chapter 11 now, and I haven't spilled the beans yet ;-) thanks for reviewing, as always :-)

**Storygirl2009**: I made you cry? I made you cry! That's a wonderful compliment! This chapter should clear up your question about the two Luciuses. (your hunch is correct though!)

**Poemzie**: ah, I am sorry for doubting your sincerity. You are such a very sweet person that I thought you incapable of criticizing my work. You've convinced me though, that you would if you thought it warranted… so…. Thank you!!

**Kandice**: you're emotional as well? Wow. I don't know what to say. And as for the original plot: I used to think it was a rather farfetched idea, but it just wouldn't leave me alone and now it's rather grown on me ;-) Glad you like it too!

**AriannaMalfoy**: thank you so much for that wonderful review! blushes I'm glad you think I didn't overdo the drama; I _am_ rather fond of that, haha.

**MiSSxMELON**: you took the time to review every single chapter! does victory dance I am flattered you like the story: as I mentioned above; the thing with the two Luciuses should become clear this chapter.

**Kontara**: thank you for reviewing: well, you need wait no longer!

I had some trouble writing this chapter, as opposed to chapters 4-7, which just flowed from my mind and took something like two days to write. I struggled with this chapter a lot more, but the result is alright, I think.

Here some -but not all- of the questions that have arisen so far, will be answered. A few new ones might arise though, as the title implies. Curious? Okay, I'll shut up and let you read ;-)

Enjoy.

* * *

To Save a Malfoy

Ch 8 Questions.

"I declined his offer," Lucius explained calmly, his words creating absolute silence in the room. He shrugged elegantly. Despite the gravity of the subject they were discussing, Hermione found herself wondering idly how it was that this man could even make the most mundane actions look elegant. It was probably a Malfoy thing.

"I can only assume he did not anticipate that particular possibility," the oldest Malfoy continued evenly.

"Why did you decline?" asked the powerful wizard sitting in the chair behind his desk, looking at Lucius piercingly over the rim of his glasses.

"My first priority is and always will be the Malfoy name and my family. Joining the Dark Lord would have inevitably interfered with my obligations to them."

The statement was delivered calmly, collectedly, as if it had not led to his capture and subsequent imprisonment. Lucius sat up straight in his chair, looking simply magnificent in the robes that his son had gotten for him. They were a beautiful midnight blue, the graceful folds falling around his tall frame hiding the fact that he was not back to a normal weight just yet. The simplicity in robes that suited the son so well, complemented the father's looks rather nicely too and the colour was brilliant. The blue was a beautiful contrast with the pale blond hair and it gave a blue tinge to the trademark silver-grey eyes. All in all he looked rather impressive.

Getting reacquainted, if one could call it that, with his son had done Lucius a world of good. Draco had spent as much of his time as possible at Hogwarts castle. Professor Dumbledore had most graciously offered him a room as soon as he was apprised of the situation and the offer had been accepted gratefully. Doing his best to cut the time he spent at work to a bare minimum, the Malfoy heir could be found in his father's room for the remainder of his time.

The two Malfoys had gotten more at ease in each others company and their time was spent mainly by Lucius asking his son all sorts of questions, ranging from his childhood memories to life at Hogwarts and his favourite classes to his friendship with the three Gryffindors. The picture Hermione had given him of the four of them had definitely become one of Lucius' more prized possessions.

Understandably, Lucius' captivity and torture at the hand of Voldemort were subjects barely touched upon. It was clear to everyone involved that he did not want to talk about it and nobody saw a need to press him for the information.

Fact remained though, that however painful it would be to Lucius, he was going to have to tell the story sooner rather than later, seeing that it was still not clear who had taken his place and how. Eventually it would help them restore some of the Malfoys' good reputation, although for now the matter was kept away from the public, of course.

Dumbledore had asked some of the Order members to try and find out as much as they could about 'the other Lucius' as the doppelganger had been dubbed, now that the man was being held for questioning and awaiting trial. Kingsley Shacklebolt and Nymphadora Tonks were both working on this particular assignment.

And, pending their investigation, the wise, old wizard had requested of Lucius, that he revealed what he knew of how this whole situation came into existence in the first place.

So that particular Thursday afternoon found Severus Snape, both the Malfoys and Hermione Granger in Dumbledore's office, as the Headmaster questioned the older Malfoy.

Had she not known that Lucius had been plagued by his nightmares to a greater extend than he had been for quite some time, the night preceding this meeting, she might have thought it did not concern him in the least. He looked so calm and managed to exude a certain aristocratic confidence that was so typically Malfoy as he sat in the high wing-backed chair in front of the Headmaster's desk. Looking at him, it was hard to imagine he had been hanging on to life by the fingernails a mere couple of weeks ago.

On the faces of the other people in the room, she could see all sorts of emotions. Draco appeared to be feeling proud and guilty both at the same time, Dumbledore had something akin to approval in his clear blue eyes, but there was also another emotion there, something she couldn't put her finger on right then. The person most difficult to read was the Potions Master. His features were schooled into a careful blank, giving nothing away of his true feelings. The young Gryffindor wondered if the professor was remembering his own allegiance to the Dark Lord. How he _had_ accepted what was offered him and now, twenty-odd years later was still paying the price for it.

"So you declared this to Voldemort?" asked Dumbledore and at Lucius' nod, he continued, "how did your capture come about?"

At this, Lucius showed the first sign of being uncomfortable; he shifted in his seat and rearranged the folds of his robes needlessly, before replying: "It happened some two months after that first meeting. I had been allowed to go home after my refusal and was never again approached on the subject of joining. At the time I was too relieved to give it much thought, although I should have known it had been too easy…" his voice trailed off and it took him a couple of moments before he could continue.

"When they finally came, it was in the early evening… I was in the library, reading a little before dinner. Thank Merlin Narcissa had taken Draco and went to visit her mother…" He swallowed with obvious effort as his gaze shifted to his son for the briefest moment.

"The door slammed open; there were four of them… I managed to stun one or maybe two, but there were too many… I remember being hit and falling against the desk. The next thing I know is that I was in some kind of prison cell."

"I do seem to remember Malfoy Manor is… rather well protected against intrusion," said Dumbledore, "Do you have any idea how they managed to enter the house and locate you without your noticing?"

Lucius let out a mirthless laugh at that. "You cannot imagine how that question has plagued me for all those years. It is virtually impossible to enter the Manor without being invited to it; it would have taken nothing short of Voldemort himself to enter by force and I do believe I would have noticed that much."

"So you think they had an accomplice inside the Manor?" questioned Dumbledore.

The pale man in front of him nodded grimly. "I have found no other possible explanation and believe me, I had ample opportunity and inclination to try!"

The ancient Headmaster cleared his throat and asked gently: "Have you come up with any particular suspects we might look in to?"

Lucius let out a sigh at that and massaged his temples with his hands.

"I have turned this over and over in my head and there are only a limited number of possibilities. We had a couple of people working around the Manor at that time, a gardener by the name of Tim Richardson, a personal assistant to Narcissa by the name of Maeve Jaminon and a nursemaid for our son, Catherine Langley. All three of them could, in theory have let those people inside my house."

As Hermione quickly glanced around the room again, she saw her own emotions reflected on the faces of the others. It must be absolutely horrible to be accosted in the safety of one's own home, especially one that normally was so well-protected against intrusion. And then the knowledge that a person you trusted, who lived in your house and under your care, had betrayed your trust in the worst way imaginable… she could well understand the Potion's Masters hard stare, or the anger she saw blazing in Draco's eyes.

"Who was it?" he asked between gritted teeth.

Lucius turned to face his son. "I don't know for certain. I seem to remember Richardson had the evening off, but my recollection of the day preceding that evening is sketchy at best." There was a regretful quality to his tone of voice, but Hermione had a strong suspicion it had nothing to do with him being sorry he didn't remember any details, but rather that the fact did not allow him to pinpoint a suspect.

"Are these people still in employment at the Manor?" Dumbledore asked Draco.

"The nursemaid understandably has left a long time ago and the maintenance of the gardens has long since been transferred to the care of the house elves," declared the silver-haired Slytherin. "Maeve, however, still resides at the Manor and keeps my mother company, since father is away from home on business fairly often." Realizing his mistake, he turned to face Lucius and opened his mouth to speak, but Lucius waved his unspoken apology away.

"It should not be too hard to locate the other two, don't you think, Severus?" said Dumbledore.

"I should think not, Headmaster," agreed the Potions Professor.

"I will leave the matter to you then, Severus. Use whatever means you see fit and keep me informed on your progress."

Snape nodded.

"We are also going to have to find out who the other Lucius is," commented Lucius.

"I have a couple of people already looking in to that," replied Dumbledore, "do you have any idea who would've known you well enough to impersonate you?"

"I am afraid not. I have been discussing this with Severus as well, but we managed to rule out every single person I came up with. Most of my acquaintance at the time seem to have been unable to withstand the lure of the Dark Lord," said Lucius, unaware of Snape's barely perceptible flinch at this statement, "And those that did not become Death Eaters apparently were seen on social events together with me at least once, so that makes it rather unlikely it would be one of them."

"Very well," said Dumbledore, "we're going to have to wait and see what my two spies at the Ministry can find out. I will keep you posted on their progress."

"What intrigues me in the matter," said Draco after a moment of silence "is why Voldemort would go through so much trouble to make it appear as though my father had joined his ranks."

"An excellent question, Mr Malfoy," replied the Headmaster, a brief twinkle of approval in his eyes, "care to shed some light onto the matter, Severus?"

The attention of all people present shifted to the dark shadow in the corner.

"I can only take an educated guess as to what his reasons were," commented the Potions Master. "What I know for certain, is that at that particular time, Voldemort was still considered fairly inconsequential by the old wizarding families. To have a powerful representative of a respected and influential family like the Malfoys in his inner circle, would add considerably to his reputation. And it did. Almost the moment word got out – only in the right circles of course – that Lucius Malfoy had joined Voldemort's cause, other pureblood wizards were eager to enter into his service. The ranks of Death Eaters expanded exponentially in the half year following Lucius' initiation in a way that was never achieved again. Thankfully, I might add."

During Snape's explanation, Lucius' face bore an expression of severe distaste. Hermione could see how much he detested the idea of his name being used like that. But however horrible, the theory was a very plausible one.

Dumbledore appeared to have come to the same conclusion, because he nodded thoughtfully at his Potions Master's explanation, resting his elbows on his desk and his fingertips placed against each other. Calmly he surveyed the people gathered in his office.

"Since we have already discussed the who and the why of the matter, I guess there is one more thing left to investigate: how did they manage to create a picture-perfect copy of Lucius?"

"Polyjuice Potion?" said Draco.

Before anyone could respond, Hermione was already shaking her head.

"That's not very likely. The effects of the potion are only temporary; it would be highly inconvenient to have to take another dose every couple of hours. Besides, remember Professor Moody? I never saw or heard about the other Lucius carrying around a flask with him all the time. And furthermore, very little is known about the effects of long-term use of the Polyjuice Potion."

Lucius looked at his friend and said appreciatively: "Bravo, Severus, you have taught her well."

But the Potions Master would hear no such compliment. "Miss Granger's excellent knowledge on Polyjuice is no more my merit than it is yours, Lucius. You should give credit where credit is due and in this instance that would be Miss Granger's empiric attitude towards the subject of Potions," he replied smoothly.

Hermione blushed at his comment and sent a death glare at Draco, who had divulged this particular secret of hers to his Head of House. That annoyingly smug smirk was on his face again and suddenly the Gryffindor remembered vividly what it had been like to want to hex him into oblivion.

Lucius turned to look at her and Hermione discovered where his dear son got his smirk: "I do believe you must tell me more about this later."

Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling merrily at this light intermezzo in a rather serious meeting and had Hermione looked his way, she might have seen that Snape was doing his best to suppress a grin.

"Anyway," said Hermione, "Glamour Charms are out of the question as well, since those are fairly easy to spot and counteract and furthermore I suppose Voldemort would have warded his quarters against such deceptions."

At her not-at-all-subtle change of subject the Potions Master did grin, but he also conceded her point with a bow of his head.

"Which leaves…?" asked Draco.

"Research," replied the brown-haired Gryffindor succinctly.

"Ah, Miss Granger, I trust I can leave this particular task to you?" asked the Headmaster, the twinkle at her obvious eagerness to begin such an exciting project clearly visible behind his half-moon spectacles.

"I'd be happy to be of assistance, Professor Dumbledore," the young woman replied gracefully, while sending another death glare Draco's way, since he was snickering at her rather characteristic behaviour.

"Well," said the Headmaster, getting up from his chair and seemingly oblivious to the merriment of the Slytherin and the subsequent annoyance of the Gryffindor, "that settles it then."

* * *

The next three days, Hermione buried herself in the library. The habits of her student days were easy to rekindle and she absolutely loved the smell of the dust in the Restricted Section, the feel of paper and parchment beneath her hands, spots of ink on her fingers and a couple of quills in the messy bun of her hair. Hermione Granger was happy.

Since Lucius was doing so much better now, he did not need her constant attention. Draco helped him with the things he still required assistance with, but as time passed those became less and less. So the medi-witch had no qualms with spending her days in the library, only emerging for meals… If she remembered it was lunch- or dinnertime that is.

Her research was coming along nicely, but she had not yet found a definitive answer to their question. She could feel though, that she was near. The book she had found on ancient dark spells was definitely promising. She was scribbling furiously away, buried behind a whole stack of books, her hair had come halfway undone, her bun nothing more than a haphazard pile of curls and her fingers splotched with ink all over.

This book was truly fascinating! The spells in it were considered dark, but some of them had potential. Maybe if the incantations were altered a bit, they could be used for good instead of bad. Without thinking, she was tapping her quill against her bottom lip, her eyes turned to the right and up, staring at nothing in particular.

She was startled from her thoughts, as someone dropped into the seat beside her.

"Tell me, Granger, have you ever considered just living here? With all the time you spend here, it can't be much of a difference."

"Very funny!" commented Hermione and swatted Draco on the head with her notes.

"I'm serious: I haven't seen you at lunch or dinner for three days! People are starting to worry, you know," her companion smiled.

"Draco this is very important research…"

"I know that," he interrupted her. "All I'm asking is that you take care of yourself. We don't want you to end up in the bed next to father's."

"Draco," Hermione said, her hand pressed against her heart in a melodramatic gesture, "you care! I am touched."

"Oh stuff it, bookworm. Come and go to dinner with me; prove to the Professors you are still alive!"

"But I might be on to something…" She trailed off as she saw the look on his face. "I'm coming, I'm coming!"

She laughed as Draco grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her from the library with him.

"And you're staying for dessert too!" he said determinedly.

Hermione looked to her right in surprise. How had he known she was thinking of skipping dessert? She had to hand it to the Slytherins: they were a perceptive bunch.

Nevertheless, she threw him an annoyed glance.

"Malfoy, you're a bothersome brat!"


	9. Answers

**Disclaimer**: I borrowed the characters for dramatic purposes only. I will return them… eventually… except maybe Lucius. Can I keep Lucius?

**AN**. Yay! FFN is back online! So, I have been suffering from a bit of writer's block, not to mention I have had little time to write. But I couldn't keep you waiting for an update any longer… what can I say: I am a pushover ;-) Of course it has absolutely nothing to do with all the fabulous reviews you guys have been giving me! No really: I don't mind that if I don't post new chapters, you won't be able to review. It is not that I have withdrawal symptoms or anything… (hides trembling hands and the coffee, alcohol and tranquillizers, a combination of which has been used – in vain I might add – to suppress the symptoms ;-))

Anyway: I am hoping to get some more writing done in the weekend, but I am struggling with the format a little. I know what I want to happen, I am just debating what would be the best way to let events unfold.

Let's get on with the personal thank-yous.

**Shyngr8**: What can I say: I think Draco is a sweetie deep down. He just doesn't know it yet in canon ;-) thank you as usual for your kind compliments.

**Evan M**: thank you for dropping me a line! The 'bravo!' on my English is most welcome (it does remind me of the Phantom of the Opera though, anyone else has that?)

**Kontara**: well: I aim to please! ;-) the two Luciuses will most certainly get to meet. You are going to have to wait a couple of chapters I think, before we find out who the impostor is, but the two of them will meet in chapter ten!

**Pallas Athena1**: Wow. Really. Wow. Your review leaves me momentarily speechless. It is so gratifying to hear you think the story is exciting, tantalizing even and you like my Malfoys. I really like your story as well, hoping just as much that _you_'ll update soon! Thank you so much for reviewing.

**MISSxMELON**: I am afraid you misunderstand me, sweetie. The impostor-Lucius is not in Hogwarts, hence he does not show up on the Marauders' Map at all. The spot labelled Lucius Malfoy is Hermione's patient, the one Ron and Harry freed from Voldemort's fortress and, according to Hermione, professor Snape and the Marauders' Map _is_ the real Lucius Malfoy. How exactly 'the bad guys' managed to make a picture-perfect copy of Lucius will be explained in this chapter. Thank you for reviewing. Your effort is greatly appreciated!

**Jay**: I just can't believe anyone would use the word awesome to describe my writing! Thank you ever so much!

**Poemzie the Phoenix**: hey! You changed your name!! Hermione reminds you of a colleague you used to have? Do I know her? ;-) thanks for reviewing.

**Mary**: thank you! (bows gratefully)

**Shabopo**: I read in your profile you tend to be rather stern, so your praise is highly appreciated! I hope you will like this chapter as well.

**Anni**: you read it all in one evening? Thanx. I always thought that reviews would start to resemble one another after a while, but you paid me a nice, original compliment. I hope you enjoy the next chapter as well.

**Wackoramaco87**: yep, I love Pallas Athena1 too! ;-) thanx for reviewing; I did my best to make this chapter exciting as well.

**Michelline**: I am glad you think the idea of Lucius not being Lucius is original. I used to think it was rather far-fetched, but you guys seem to like it well enough. Hope you enjoy this chapter: it explains some of the relation between Narcissa and Lucius. Thnx for reviewing.

**Athena Linborn**: I am running out of nice things to say to my reviewers! I am glad you like the story: of course we will eventually find out who the impostor is, just like we will find out what the exact relationship of Hermione and Draco is… Just wait for future chapters (evil laugh) Thank you for leaving me this wonderful review.

**Star-Angel23**: mmmph-mwmm-fwmm (swallows brownies) sorry about that. Thank you for the review; I also like stories where Lucius isn't an absolute bastard. Black-and-white characters are not too captivating: it's the shades of grey that make life interesting. ;-)

All of you guys: thank you so much for all the wonderful, sweet, generous, lovely reviews you have seen fit to bestow upon me. You cannot imagine how nice it is to see a review alert in your e-mailbox and read all those lovely messages. I have been very busy these last couple of weeks and your reviews really did help when I was stressed out. Big thank you for that. I owe you.

To repay my debt, I will continue writing on this story and for now, the first downpayment: a slightly longer, new chapter!

If you like, you can leave another review ;-)

Enjoy.

* * *

To save a Malfoy 

Ch. 9 Answers

The portraits in the hallways of Hogwarts castle smiled benevolently at the woman walking past in a hurried stride. Her burgundy robes were a rather clear indication as to which house she belonged to. The portraits in the vicinity of the library certainly knew the long brown curls dancing merrily in time with her determined paces, for they had seen that hair many times before.

But the girl in question paid no heed to them as she rushed past, her eyes gleaming with an excitement only she knew the reason of. A heavy old tome was held securely in her arms, but she hardly seemed to notice its weight as she practically jumped up the stairs, intent on her destination. The few students that happened to cross her path, hastily jumped aside as she purposefully swept by, seemingly without even noticing them.

At a large, dark wooden door she halted and when she placed her hand against the wood, she could feel the tingle of magic as the wards on the room recognized her touch and the door opened easily. She burst through the door and took a few steps into the room. She was positively beaming with delight as the attention of the three men seated in comfortable chairs by the fire shifted to her and her eyes glittered with satisfaction as she declared:

"I think I may have found the answer!"

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled approvingly at her from behind his glasses.

"So soon, Miss Granger? That is impressive even for you."

Hermione felt a faint blush colour her cheeks at that comment and combined with the sparkle in her eyes and the slightly dishevelled curls she looked simply adorable. Not that she was aware of the fact herself.

"Thank you, Professor," she said.

Professor Snape got up from his chair and gestured for her to take his place in an unexpected gesture of gallantry. The young Gryffindor had to try her best to hide her surprise.

"So enlighten us, Miss Granger," he said and for once there was little mockery in his voice.

Hermione took the seat, placed the book on her lap and nodded her thanks to the professor.

Glancing around at the three men looking at her with interest, she took a breath and began.

"First I researched 'Ancient Dark Spells' which I know has a section on appearance altering potions and charms. There was a mention of a certain spell there, which I though was worth investigating. So I worked my way through a couple of books and I found the most detailed description of the spell in 'Devious Disguises and their Revealing Charms'. I think this is the spell we are looking for."

"So what spell is this?" asked Lucius.

"It is called the Geminis Fortunae. It allows a person, the caster of the spell, to transform another person, the recipient, to take on the exact appearance of someone for an extended period of time. In contrast to Glamour Charms or the Polyjuice Potion, the recipient ages like the victim would and the effects do not wear off as time goes by; to end the spell the counter-spell must be performed or the binding must be undone."

"The binding?" asked Professor Snape.

"Yes. For the spell to work, the recipient is bound to a certain artefact with a potion from a mixture of the victim's blood and crushed Occamy eggshells. As long as the recipient keeps the artefact with him, the spell can only be lifted by the person who originally cast it or if the victim dies. However, if the recipient is separated from the object binding him to the victim, the spell can be removed by just about any witch or wizard. I have not been able to find how difficult it is to break the binding though."

The girl looked thoughtful at that, biting her lip for a moment, before continuing.

"The Geminis Fortunae is a very complicated spell and it can only be cast by a powerful witch or wizard. Because of the use of the victim's blood, which must be taken by force and since this particular spell was used for… less amiable purposes by dark wizards in the past, it has been banished since the 1850's. The book is only descriptive of the spell, the incantation is not listed."

After this, Hermione was silent.

"You managed to find all this out in a mere three days?" asked Lucius, sounding awed in spite of himself.

"I had a good idea where to start looking."

Severus Snape, who had been listening intently from his spot next to the fireplace spoke up, addressing his old friend: "Do you remember anything like the spell Miss Granger just described?"

Lucius frowned, and then shook his head. "I'm… not sure. I… don't think so." He looked up at Snape, frustration clearly visible on his face. "Damn, why can't I remember?" he burst out suddenly.

"Don't be too hard on yourself, Lucius," placated Dumbledore.

"The binding would have had to take place almost immediately after you were captured, since your absence from the Manor could not be easily explained for an extended period of time. I imagine you were in pretty bad shape," Hermione commented softly.

The silver-haired wizard calmed down a bit, but Hermione could see he was nowhere near reconciled to the idea.

"We need to find out what the artefact is that was used in the binding and if we manage to separate the other Lucius from this object, we should be able to expose him as an impostor," concluded Snape, picking up the discussion.

"That is the theory, yes," confirmed Hermione, "But as I said just now, I have found little information on how to break the binding. I don't know if there are any spells involved or not. The only thing I've been able to come up with is a reference in another spellbook, written in Runic. I have no idea how accurate the translation is, though, since the language used in the book is very old."

Quickly leafing through her notes, the Gryffindor was softly muttering to herself, while the three men exchanged amused glances.

"Ah, here it is," declared the girl, pulling out a piece of parchment that was mostly blank, except for two lines of runes, with a neatly written translation in English.

"There were two segments that commented on how to break the binding, but I'm afraid it is a little cryptic. The first one says:

_The fortunes of the twins_

_will only be divided,_

_when what once was unique_

_with its source's collided_.

The second seems another reference to the unbinding. It reads:

_Separated from the charm, _

_its true form will appear;_

_The pureblood touches no such harm,_

_his conscience being clear._

Or something like that," Hermione mumbled, suddenly seeming to doubt her own powers of translating Runes.

"If it makes you feel better, maybe Professor Snape could take a look at those Runes as well, Miss Granger," said Dumbledore pleasantly.

The former Head Girl looked from the Headmaster to the man in his black robes standing next to the fireplace in surprise.

"I assure you, Miss Granger," said the Potions Master in a sarcastic tone of voice, "that I can do a passable job of translating ancient Runes."

Hermione smiled at his remark, so reminiscent of the acerbic tone she remembered so well from his classes.

"I was merely surprised, Professor," she stated, "I should have realised of course that many of the old Potions recipes are in Runic as well. I assume you could do a more 'passable job' than I can."

The Potions Master pulled up an eyebrow: "Thank you so much for clearing that up, Miss Granger. Had you not explained that to us, I would have wondered all day why it is exactly that I know quite a lot about ancient Runes."

Instead of taking offence at his remark, Hermione burst out laughing. For the first time since she had entered the room, all wound up about her discovery, she relaxed.

Strange as it may sound, but her former Professor's sharp wit had that effect on her ever since she had gotten to known him in a more personal way during both their time at the Order. Admittedly, it had taken her the better part of her Hogwarts education, but she had finally figured out that Severus Snape's bite wasn't as bad as his bark, although the bark _was_ most impressive.

She indulged herself in something she rarely did, or rather dared…

"You are so funny, Severus!"

At this, he rolled his eyes in a mixture of desperation and exasperation and murmured: "Absolutely no respect…" under his breath.

Hermione smiled up at him, her eyes glittering with mirth.

"If you could take a look at it, I would be much obliged."

On moments like these, Hermione Granger was glad she had learned a little more about the Potions Master. It meant that, although superficially he appeared to be scowling at her, the infinitesimal twitch at the corner of his mouth did not escape her notice. Her smile went from teasing to warm appreciation in a heartbeat.

"You have done a splendid job, Miss Granger, as you always do," complimented Dumbledore, interrupting the little sparring contest between the Gryffindor and the head of Slytherin.

"Now, I think Lucius should visit the Ministry in about a day or three. Do you think you can have the translation done by then?"

"That should be no problem, Headmaster," confirmed Snape.

"Splendid!"

* * *

Hermione ran her finger probingly over the long scar on Lucius' shoulder blade. 

"I'm afraid this one isn't going to go away," she said, straightening up, "you could ask Professor Snape for a salve, it might improve a little, but that's the best you can do, I think."

She looked his torso over once more with the appraising look of a medi-witch; his skin was still pale, but now it was the smooth, alabaster that was about as trademark Malfoy as the moonlight hair. The bruises had all long since faded and most of his wounds had healed without scarring. But there was nothing she could do about the old scars marring his skin, the biggest of which was the one on his right shoulder: it was a broad, ragged red line. Hermione did not want to imagine what the wound that had caused it must have looked like.

She was glad to note that he was no longer so painstakingly thin that she could count his ribs. Because he had had little exercise, he was still thin rather than lean, but she thought he might remedy that as soon as the exposure of the other Lucius was behind him and he would be free to move about as he pleased.

"You can put your robes back on. I am very pleased with your progress," she told the blond wizard.

Hermione turned to face the window and stared at the beautiful moonlit landscape outside. It was almost full moon and the Hogwarts grounds were bathed in the milky white light, the water of the lake glittering in the distance.

Behind her, inside the room, she could hear the soft whispering of cloth and the vague reflection in the window showed Lucius pulling the fine linen shirt over his shoulders. A small sigh escaped his lips and the fact that she was still in the room to hear it, clearly indicated the distraction of his mind to Hermione, who had noticed that the older Malfoy loathed to show his weaknesses to anyone.

The first two weeks he had been in too bad a shape to do anything about it, but the moment he regained some level of control, he started to fall back in a pattern that had probably become all too familiar during his captivity.

It was peculiar, that as his physical condition improved, it was almost too easy to forget that he had sustained more than enough psychological damage as well. Those wounds would probably take much longer to heal, if they ever would completely…

Were he still in the weakened condition he had been in at the beginning, she would not have thought twice about throwing her arm around him and pulling him against her, or taking his hand in hers and give it a squeeze, or whatever else she felt like doing to comfort him. And she would have asked immediately what was bothering him the moment she'd heard his sigh. It was something of a natural instinct that just took over when she was caring for a severely ill patient; she didn't even spare it a single thought.

Over the last couple of weeks a subtle change had taken place, though. He was by no means still dependent on others and comforting him was now something that had to be negotiated, that he would have to grant permission for. Or not.

And from what she had seen of him, she knew he would not allow himself the vulnerability that came with letting someone comfort you. Even though he loved Draco's visits and actively participated in the meetings with Professor Dumbledore and his old friend, Hermione had caught him more than once with a blank expression on his face and eerily dead eyes. It was only to be expected of course, but she was a little worried still. As far as she had been able to determine, there was no-one he spoke to about whatever it was that was troubling him.

The generous-hearted Gryffindor hoped that the business with the impostor could be resolved quickly, so that he could return home, to the Manor and to his wife. Naturally the news would be a terrible shock to Narcissa Malfoy as well, but maybe she could succeed where everybody else seemed to be failing. Hermione had no idea how the woman would react, but she could only hope she would be able to help her husband.

Draco had told her that his parents really did love each other and even now that it had turned out that the man residing in Malfoy Manor at the time was not really his father, it bode well for Lucius that his wife did appear to love him dearly. She would surely be able to provide a safe environment for him in which he would be able to open up to her. A gentle smile appeared on Hermione's face at the thought.

Yet as she saw Lucius rubbing the muscles of his neck as she turned away from the window and he heaved another sigh, seemingly without noticing, she could no longer ignore it.

"What is troubling you, Lucius?"

He started at the sound of her voice and a look of slight embarrassment slid over his face momentarily, before it quickly disappeared. He was getting better and better at hiding his feelings, Hermione noticed.

"It is nothing, really," he replied.

The young woman merely pulled up an eyebrow and sat down in the chair opposite the bed he was still sitting on. He had pulled on his robes, but hadn't started on the buttons yet, so she could see the white linen shirt between the folds of magnificent dark green.

He seemed to be somewhat uncomfortable at her discovery of his discomposure and he carefully wiped his face clean of any emotion before settling his gaze on her.

Too bad his medi-witch had observed him a little too closely for the past weeks, or he might even have gotten away with it.

"If you want, you can talk to me about whatever it is that is bothering you," she told him calmly, keeping her gaze fixed on his.

"I know you don't like the idea much, but I can see something _is_ the matter. However," she paused and smiled slightly here, "if you tell me to bugger off, as my dear friend Ron would put it, I will most graciously do so."

Hermione let her sincerity show in her warm gaze and as Lucius Malfoy looked at those eyes, he found it was hard to resist their golden-brown depths. He sighed, closing his eyes for a brief moment.

"I am worried," he stated simply.

"About the meeting at the Ministry?"

"That as well, yes."

"But?"

Lucius studied his slim, elegant hands.

"Dumbledore informed me that Narcissa will be there to testify."

As the woman opposite him remained silent, he continued: "This will be a great shock to her; I cannot guess how she will react. I know she is sharing a house with a possible suspect and could be in danger if she were to betray the fact that I am still alive. And while I fully understand the Headmaster's decision not to apprise her of the situation yet, I know her well enough to know she will not be pleased."

At this last statement he looked up and for once he did not try to hide the emotion in his eyes. Hermione saw fear intermingled with hope in those pools of silvery grey and she could almost feel this man's pain.

"I can imagine this must be very difficult for you," she said sincerely, "do you have any idea how she would react normally to something as shocking as this?"

"She was always very collected. I imagine she would try and stay composed as best she could," he told her.

"So she would probably be calm and try and analyse the situation?" concluded Hermione.

"That's what I would expect, yes. I hardly ever saw Cissa loose her cool." The last statement was accompanied by a little smile and his voice had a soft quality to it she had not yet heard.

"I'm afraid she may not believe me."

"Why wouldn't she believe you?" Hermione questioned softly

"Because it would mean she would have to admit she has been living a lie for the past twenty years," Lucius explained. "I find myself wondering…" he trailed off.

"Why she never noticed anything was wrong?"

Hermione had been pondering this as well; from what Draco had told her, his parents were closer than she would have guessed herself. But his father was away from home a lot, meaning Narcissa was spending a significant part of her time without her husband.

"Tell me, what was your relationship like, if you don't mind me asking?"

Lucius got up from the bed and started pacing slowly in front of the fireplace.

"Our marriage was arranged, as I am sure you know is customary," he started. "Our fathers came to an agreement when I was about fifteen and the marriage took place one month before my twentieth birthday. Cissa was of respectable family and she was beautiful as well."

He stopped to lean his forearm on the mantelpiece and stared into the flames.

"She was intelligent, had the perfect manners and I discovered swiftly that I enjoyed her company very much. Of course there's always business to attend to, but I found myself longing to return home at the end of the day."

A wistful expression graced his features as he recalled the early days of his marriage.

"It took me about three months to realise I had fallen in love with Cissa. When I found out she returned my feelings I felt most fortunate."

Hermione smiled at this: she had always considered arranged marriages an absolute horror. It would appear though that sometimes it worked just splendidly.

"I spent as much time at home as I could the last months of her pregnancy and just after Draco was born. Much too soon I had to focus my attention on business though. I was away from home a lot the last few months. How fervently I have wished I had spent more time with my son…."

His voice had gone very soft now and had a slightly ragged quality to it. Hermione could see the raw anguish in his eyes, the regret over actions long in the past. She felt her heart go out to this surprisingly strong-willed man, who had survived years of Voldemort's terror and came out with his sanity more or less intact. A man who would have to face his demons in a couple of days and under the scrutiny of the Minister of Magic no less.

Before she could even think twice about it, she had gotten up from her chair and crossed the room to where he stood. She placed her hand on his arm in a gesture of comfort. He raised his gaze from the crackling flames in the fireplace to her eyes.

"I cannot possibly begin to understand how you feel, Lucius," she started, her voice gentle, "but I do know one thing: when you go to the Ministry you will not be alone. Professor Snape and Professor Dumbledore are powerful allies, both in their own right. And Draco will be there as well. I will not belittle your feelings by saying that everything is going to be all right. But I have seen the way your son looks at you, Lucius; he will do everything in his power to help you."

"I just would feel a whole lot more comfortable if we had a better idea who we're up against," he replied, although the mention of Draco's support had erased the troubled expression in his eyes to some extend.

Hermione nodded her understanding. It was all very puzzling indeed and since Lucius was most certainly going to be the centre of attention at the Ministry, she could understand his need to know as much as possible beforehand, allowing him to be prepared.

"Did Professor Snape manage to find out anything?"

He shook his head.

"We have no idea who has been taking my place all these years and I find the idea unsettling, to say the least.

And we're no further in figuring out who let the Death Eaters into the Manor that evening either. Severus has informed me that Catherine Langley was fired very shortly after my capture and she has died in a Death Eater raid within the year. So that makes her an unlikely accomplice.

Tim Richardson apparently moved to live with his brother in the north of France at about the same time and nobody has heard from him since, which could either mean he was their inside man and he was… disposed of or he really did move to France and is also an unlikely suspect.

And that leaves us with Maeve Jaminon. She has lived at the Manor for all these years, a fact that could be explained as the gratitude of the impostor Malfoy. But if they were both in on it, then how did Draco manage to get away from it all, without either of them noticing?"

Hermione shrugged helplessly; she no more had the answers than he did.

"I am sorry for bothering you with all these useless questions," Lucius said, suddenly, straightening up. The girl's hand slipped from his arm and fell back to her side.

"Just blame it on my being anxious about what will happen and how Cissa will take this."

There was silence for a moment before he added, thoughtfully: "I just keep wondering if she ever noticed something was going on…"

"It is very strange how people can miss what appear to be obvious clues when they don't expect anything to be wrong," Hermione said gently.

"I've read a Muggle study once, in which perfectly normal researchers were placed in an institution for psychiatric patients, posing as patients; however, they behaved like they normally would. The purpose of the study was to try and find out how soon the nursing staff, who believed the researchers to be actual patients, would notice that their 'patients' were perfectly normal.

At first the researchers would make their notes secretively, afraid that if the staff saw them writing, they would check up on it and find out about the study that way.

But the staff paid no attention to the writing at all and eventually the researchers just made their notes in plain sight. The only thing the staff did, was make a note in their chart, saying the 'patient exhibits writing behaviour'. They never once realised that the researchers weren't psychiatric patients at all. The study was called 'About being sane in insane places' I think."()

Lucius was looking at her with a curious gleam in his eyes and some other emotion, she couldn't quite decipher.

"You amaze me, Miss Granger," he said.

"How so?" she asked, surprised.

"I have been worrying about this for weeks and I talk to you for a little while and suddenly it all seems perfectly understandable."

"I am sure Narcissa can be convinced of the truth of the matter, especially with Draco's help and once that is done, she can help you settle back into your life."

"Draco is wonderful, don't you think?" he remarked suddenly, with paternal pride.

Hermione smiled warmly at this.

"He is. And you are very important to him already, Lucius," she said surely.

He nodded thoughtfully, his gaze returning to the fire. "I cannot tell you how much that means to me."

After a couple of moments of silence he sighed again, but this time it sounded as though a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He turned back to her again.

"Thank you."

AN: () the study Hermione mentions to Lucius really does exist.


	10. Hearing

**Disclaimer**: If I owned them… the books would probably be called something along the lines of "Lucius Malfoy and (insert something clever here)" don't you think?

**AN**: Hello again. Well, it's been about a week since I last updated, so I am starting to get that tingly feeling again, which tells me it is about time to upload another chapter.

Sadly, I have not been getting on with the next couple of chapters as well as I would like. I have loads of idea's and plotlines in my head, but I can't seem to decide what would work best. I promise I will spend some serious time thinking about that, although this week I am horrendously busy and it will probably have to wait a little while…..

**Wackoramaco87**: If you take a good look at the author's notes of previous chapters, you will find I have already spilled the beans on the pairing ;-) Thank you so much for reviewing. Sorry you did not show up in the first draft: the computer misplaced your review, so at first I did not see it. Luckily there was this nagging memory at the back of my mind that someone had asked me the HG/LM-or-NM/LM-question.

**CharmedLeoLvr**: you will find out how Narcissa reacts of course. It will be in future chapters. A little more patience, please ;-) Sorry to you as well: you deserve the same apology and explanation as wackoramaco87 for not being in the first draft. Thank you so much for reviewing.

**Athena Linborn**: I know I stirred up a lot of questions: all will be answered in due time! I don't know if I can comply with your wish of making the chapters longer: I just write down whatever comes up and the chapters all seem to have a natural ending, I don't really have a say in the matter ;-) Coincidentally though, chapters 11 en 12, which I am writing now, do appear to be a bit longer. If you have any suggestions, they are of course more than welcome. Input is always greatly appreciated. As always: thank you so much for reviewing: you really bring a huge smile to my face.

**Sarcastic22**: I made you cry? What is it with this story that makes people cry? However, I am immensely flattered :-) Don't be jealous for not thinking up this story: you don't need to worry what you're going to put in the next chapter, lol. Thank you for reviewing.

**Shyngr8**: you want Hermione and Lucius to run off into the sunset together? Well, just keep sending me those wonderful reviews and I might grant you your wish ;-) By the way: you can stop chanting now: I'm updating already! Thanks, as always.

**The Mad Madame**: you have seen right through me. Making Lucius' past vanish was exactly how I came up with this plot; well spotted! Oh and Narcissa will be around for a while in this story and I will do my best to give her some screen time, so that we may come to understand her better. Thank you so much for leaving me this kind review.

**Jewely**: Thank you, thank you, and thank you. An update, hopefully to your liking!

**Star**-**angel23**: actually, your delayed review was a very nice surprise, since I thought I wasn't going to get any more reviews on this chapter. I am planning to expand the story, so that Harry, Ron, Draco and probably Snape will appear more often. I am even toying with the idea of introducing an original character. Thank you for taking the time to review!

Okay, so I promised myself I wouldn't beg for reviews… I always find that kind of annoying myself…well except when Cyropi begs for reviews: that girl has one wild imagination if she can come up with new ways of asking people to review after dozens and dozens of chapters…but I'm digressing.

I am tempted to beg, because I am a little stuck in the story and I could use a little encouragement. Oh and I have a rather nasty cold too, so my nose is runny and it hurts and my ear hurts as well, so I deserve huge amounts of pitying (really I do), but I am willing to settle for lots of reviews ;-)

After that pathetic show of weakness (Lucius insists blackmail would have been much more effective) I have a question for you, my faithful readers :-) As I said, I have a lot of ideas about where this story is going, but I would like to know your thoughts on it. What do you think is going to happen? And what would you like to see in this story?

Well, having said all that let me get to my knees one more time and grovel to please, please leave me a review. For all of you who have been doing that already: thank you: you really make all the trouble worth-while!

I really like this chapter myself, because we get to see Lucius in all his yummy glory and we are going to meet the impostor-Lucius, plus have the two of them in one room together for the first time!

Without further ado, I present: chapter 10!

Enjoy.

**To Save a Malfoy**

Ch. 10 Hearing

Today was not a good day to have a hangover, thought Eric Munch to himself. No, not at all. It seemed that there were more witches and wizards present at this ungodly hour today, than there had been at any day he could remember. He had registered at least fifty wands in the first hour alone. There was an atmosphere of tense anticipation and most faces were set in determination. It was as if they were waiting for something.

Eric hadn't seen this many serious faces since Voldemort had been defeated almost six weeks ago now. The wizarding world seemed to have been in a state of shock ever since. There were celebrations of course, but it was a rather subdued joy, nothing like the first time. It was as if people didn't dare believe the vile creature was gone for good this time.

Of course, the captured Death Eaters were still awaiting trial and there was a lot of magical folk out there that had lost family or friends in the Second War. Even though it had won the war, the Light Side had lost many of its own. Poppy Pomfrey, Hyacinth Hooch, Seamus Finnegan, Ernie Macmillan, Hannah Abbot, Owen Cauldwell and Mundungus Fletcher, to name a few.

People wanted those responsible and still alive to be punished. That's why the Ministry's visitor rate had gone up over the past couple of weeks. When there were important trials, they sometimes even had been forced to deny people admission, because of the large number of witches and wizards that wanted to see for themselves that those on trial were going to receive proper punishment. But today was the busiest he had seen it yet, thought Eric sourly as he glared at the witch in front of him, insisting in an irritatingly high-pitched voice that she had important business to take care of. He had just about had it with all these witches and wizards demanding he hurry up. Just as he drew breath to give the banshee-in-witch's-clothes a piece of his mind, a sudden, deadly silence permeated the large Atrium.

A group of six wizards and one witch had just emerged from one of the fireplaces on the left-hand side and started to make their way over to him. First there was Hermione Granger, flanked by wizarding world hero Harry Potter and his best friend Ron Weasley, all three of them dressed in impressive black robes. The tail end of the group comprised of Albus Dumbledore, one of the greatest wizards of his time and founder of the – now famous – Order of the Phoenix and Severus Snape, formerly despised, supposed Death Eater and now not-much-better-liked, respected member of the Order. And although every single one of these five people were enough to bring silence to a room in their own right, it was not for any of them that the tension in the huge Atrium had become so thick it seemed hard to breathe.

For it was the oldest one of the two remaining wizards that had the gaze of every single person in the room fixed on him, the expressions ranging from tightly controlled fury to loathing and outright disgust. No-one dared to say anything so the only sounds to be heard were the footsteps of the seven crossing the room, accompanied by the susurration of their long robes.

"Good morning," Albus Dumbledore said pleasantly as the group reached the Watchwizard, who was staring at them rather impolitely with his mouth hanging slightly open.

"We have an appointment with the Wizengamot. I am afraid we are running a little late."

Eric looked into those friendly twinkling blue eyes and felt his mouth open and shut a couple of times, before he found his ability to speak.

"I doubt they will start without you, sir, seeing you are the Chief Warlock," he heard himself say.

The wizened wizard in front of him smiled at that, his eyes lighting up. "Ah, right you are, Eric! I suppose you don't have to hurry too much checking our wands, in that case."

These words reminded Eric of the job he was supposed to be doing and, still looking at Dumbledore, he held out his hand blindly, feeling a wand being placed in it.

Tearing his gaze away from the blue eyes filled with mirth, he looked at the wand in his hand then his gaze travelled up from the hand that was still holding on to the other end of it, to meet the unwavering gaze of Severus Snape. Hastily he pulled the wand free from its owner's hand and proceeded to weigh it.

The crowd had closed in around them and was watching the proceedings with unmasked interest. Some of them looked positively gleeful as their gazes roved over the tall, proud figure standing in the middle of the group, undoubtedly imagining how severely he would be punished.

Even though Eric proceeded to register their wands one by one, the six warriors of the Light side remained in a circle around the hated figure, so as to prevent his escape, naturally. It was quite a sight though, a son guarding his own father.

A short wizard, with a red, puffy face standing fairly close to the seven newcomers, nudged his companion and whispered something.

"Hey Malfoy! Not so tough without your silver mask on, are you?" he taunted daringly.

Draco turned his head sharply and glared at the audacious speaker, but the man that the remark was aimed at didn't react at all. His face was an impassive mask, like it had been from the moment they'd appeared.

"And don't even think about testifying you were under Imperio!" a voice from the other side of the room said. The statement was met with hums of approval.

That somehow seemed to be the signal for all of those assembled to start yelling and shouting what they thought of the oldest Malfoy. From all sides threats and curses could be heard, all of the pain caused by the war and the hatred of Voldemort and his followers starting to pour out.

"Now would be a good time to hurry, Eric," Dumbledore remarked quietly.

The Watchwizard finished weighing the last wand and returned it to its rightful owner. "You may pass," he told them, although he could hardly be heard over the noise that the crowd was making. He opened the golden gates that separated the Atrium from the elevators.

As Hermione got her wand back, she didn't put it back up her sleeve. She had this nagging feeling she was going to need it soon.

"You killed my children, Malfoy! And for that, I will see you get the Dementor's Kiss!" an irate woman shouted, tears streaming down her cheeks, but her eyes blazing with hatred as she looked at the tall blond man in the middle of the group.

Hermione cast a quick glance in Lucius' direction and was impressed that his face still showed no emotion. He stood tall and proud, with the typical confidence that comes from being born into a family of old money and his face gave absolutely no clue as to what the comments did to him. She could not imagine he would not be affected by it, yet judging from the slightly bored expression of his features, he might as well have been waiting for his turn at the grocer's.

Holding her wand out in front of her, she started making her way to the elevators. "Make way!" she told the angry mob, moving forward. Harry and Ron had taken out their wands as well, as had Draco and they made sure the figure they were trying to protect from the masses was surrounded by the six of them at all times.

The crowd was still jeering and taunting, but grudgingly allowed them to pass. The looks that were thrown their way were none too friendly though and Hermione felt herself sigh in relief as the doors of the elevator slid closed, hiding them from the crowd and she could let her guard down for a moment.

Once again she glanced at Lucius, whose face was still as expressionless as it had been since the moment they arrived at the Ministry and she knew this was not the moment to ask if he was going to be all right.

As they arrived on the ninth floor, the Department of Mysteries, they assumed the same formation as they had in the Atrium, with Lucius in the middle and walked down the hall swiftly, turning left to the staircases that led to level Ten.

They were quite impressive, actually as they strode down the dungeon-like hallway of the tenth level, the three Gryffindors in the lead, their black robes billowing to rival Snape's.

In front of the heavy wooden door leading to Courtroom Ten, they halted and Dumbledore looked at Lucius for a moment. Neither of them spoke, but after a brief moment Malfoy nodded.

"Albus!" Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge, who had somehow managed to keep his job, bellowed the moment he saw Dumbledore's splendid blue robes covered in moons and stars, "you are aware of the fact this hearing was supposed to start ten minutes ago?"

He was staring down at the old wizard that still annoyed him to no end from the judge's balcony. Amelia Bones, who was obviously presiding over the hearing sat next to him, looking slightly disgruntled at Fudge's outburst. Higher up some fifty members of the Wizengamot, all dressed in their plum-coloured robes were talking quietly amongst themselves or waiting patiently for the newcomer to take his place and the hearing to begin.

"Of course, Cornelius. We were held up in the Atrium for a little while; created quite a stir, I'm afraid."

"Just get up here, so we can start, will you?" Fudge replied, earning a glare from the Interrogator next to him.

The Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot complied and took his place between the members.

"Today we start on the trial against Lucius Malfoy," announced the Minister in a self-important voice. "He has been accused of being a Death Eater and Voldemort's right hand man since he returned in 1994. He committed numerous atrocities as a Death Eater and we have the written testimonies of no less than fourteen other Death Eaters. He is believed to have played a major role in numerous Death Eater activities and orchestrated the majority of Voldemort's plans. Today we will start with interrogating the accused. The witness who will speak in his defence is Narcissa Malfoy-Black, wife of the defendant."

Fudge rolled up the piece of parchment he had been reading from and turned to face an Auror waiting patiently next to the door.

"Please bring the accused before us," he instructed.

The Auror nodded and disappeared through a door off the left side. A couple of moments later, Lucius Malfoy was led into the room, flanked by two Aurors. They guided him to the chair in the middle of the room and as he sat down the magical bindings closed themselves around his wrists and ankles.

Even though he was wearing the dull grey robes that were customary for detainees, his head was still held up high, as though he were wearing his expensive robes and he looked around the room with a certain disdain.

The members of the Wizengamot looked down at him, silent disapproval and sometimes downright vengefulness on their faces.

"State your full name."

"Lucius Alexander Tristan Malfoy," the man drawled in a tone of voice that suggested he was affronted at having to participate in this spectacle.

As Fudge drew breath to ask the next question, Albus Dumbledore beat him to the punch. "Are you sure that's what you want to say?"

The man in the chair in the centre of the room looked at him with contempt. He had always thought the Headmaster of Hogwarts was an old fool and he saw no reason to change his opinion on the matter. He raised an eyebrow slightly, the hauteur that was so characteristic, radiating off of him.

"Are you asking me if I am sure about my own name?" he asked with a tinge of incredulity to his voice.

The members turned towards Dumbledore, having learned in the past that it usually paid off to go with his unexpected and often illogical questions. Fudge, however, was looking a bit red in the face.

"I am asking you if the name you just stated really is your name," clarified the Chief Warlock.

"Do I even have to answer this question?" the blond-haired man in the chair said and it was clearly audible in his voice that he thought Dumbledore was quite insane.

The Minister of Magic was inclined to agree but the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement sitting to his right apparently thought otherwise.

"Mr Malfoy. I would advise you to keep in mind whom you are talking to. Since you were addressed by the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, I suggest you answer the question." Her voice was cool and her jaw set at the rude behaviour of the man.

"Oh, it is quite alright, Amelia," said the Chief Warlock calmly, "there are some other people who might be able to help with that question." The twinkle had most definitely vanished from his eye and even Fudge knew to be wary of that particular tone of voice.

"Some rather astonishing facts have come to my knowledge," Dumbledore continued, still in that calm tone of voice, "and I do believe that after I present those facts to this court, there will be another charge added to the ones that the person on trial today has already been charged with and Lucius Malfoy will be cleared of all charges."

"Albus, you are contradicting yourself," commented Fudge, irritated.

"If you'll allow me," replied the old wizard, getting up from his seat, "as I mentioned before, there are some people who'd be much more efficient at explaining the situation than I am."

Albus Dumbledore walked towards the accused with calm grace and determination.

The members were avidly watching the proceedings and the insolent look vanished from Lucius Malfoy's face as his eyes met the electric blues of his Interrogator. But Dumbledore did not stop next to his chair: he walked past and to the door, which he opened and gestured for someone out of the line of sight to enter.

The members smiled as the wizarding world's three favourite Gryffindors entered the courtroom.

Hermione looked up at all the faces staring down at them, looking impressive in their official plum-coloured robes with the silver 'W' on the front. She felt rather hot all of a sudden, with their attention fixed at them like that. And at the moment they were smiling benevolently, imagine what it would be like if you were the accused?

At that, her gaze drifted to the chair in the middle of the room, occupied by Lucius. All she could see of him were his grey robes and of course the long blond hair. She quickly glanced over at Harry and Ron; Ron was looking around with interest, although his face betrayed little and she found Harry was looking at Lucius as well. Both young men had learned to school their features, so to the casual observer, there was no telling what they were feeling. Hermione, however, being somewhat more than just a casual observer, could see that Ron was a little tense and Harry was looking at Lucius with intense dislike. He had really _hated_ only two people: Bellatrix Lestrange and Voldemort himself.

From the corner of her eye she could see the black form of the Potions Master, coming to stand next to her and a collective gasp went through the courtroom as Draco Malfoy stepped forward, looking very impressive in the elegant black robes he wore. Lucius turned around in his chair and on seeing his son, a smirk formed on his face. A moment later he went deadly pale though.

Once again, there was absolute silence as a tall man, dressed in deep red robes walked into the courtroom, his head held up proudly, his face the impassive mask it had been all day and his silver eyes calm. The long blond hair of the man was gathered at the nape of his neck with a large black bow. His confidence was almost tangible and he managed to look superior even though there were some fifty people staring down at him, quite incapable of hiding their looks of bewilderment and astonishment. Hermione looked to her left, at Lucius and was in awe of his strength. He looked simply magnificent.

She returned her attention to the man sitting in the chair in the centre of the room to find he had gone as pale as if he had seen a ghost and was looking at Lucius with horror in his eyes. His mouth was moving as if he wanted to speak, but there was no sound.

"You!" he managed at last, his voice a harsh cry, "where the hell did you come from?"

At that, pandemonium broke loose. Members were talking excitedly, others were getting up to get a better look and some just sat in their chairs, completely stunned. Not one could keep his eyes off of the two men in the centre of the room, though: one in the chair dressed in grey prison robes, one standing with six of the Light side's most famous fighters, looking superb in his elegant deep red robes. But both of them with the same, pale complexion, the same silvery-blonde hair, the same light grey eyes. The aristocratic features, the long, straight nose, the sculpted lips…. Apart from their attire, they looked like an identical twin.

Hermione studied Lucius, as he looked at the man in the chair.

"I do believe we have some matters to discuss," he said, his voice icy. His eyes were as cold and heartless as his counterpart's had ever been and the warm gleam that Hermione had come to associate with the real Lucius had vanished.


	11. The Meeting

**Disclaimer**: only being paid through the efforts of my reviewers ;-)

**AN**: I love you guys sooooo much! If I'd have known you would respond this well to me begging you to leave me lots of reviews, I'd have done it ages ago! And then I'm not even commenting on what you all wrote! You are all so exceptionally nice. I was smiling like crazy all week and have been bugging all of my friends with the wonderful reviews I have gotten! :-)

I can't resist updating already, even though I am now merely one chapter ahead of you and normally I have more material prepared, before I upload new chapters. And there is this thing I have to do for uni before tomorrow. It's not a great deal of work, but it needs to be done nevertheless. It's all your fault ;-)

About the answers you posted to the what-do-you-see-happening-in-this-story-question: I find kindred spirits in you all. If you strategically puzzle all of your answers together, you get an amazingly accurate picture of the storyline I had in mind. At first I was a bit miffed about this and considered throwing the entire storyline out and creating a new one, for the sake of being original. But then I figured, that I didn't want to do that, since I care about my plotline a lot and besides, it is actually great to have readers who are on a similar wavelength :-) And to answer the question once and for all: yes, this is a HG/LM. Well spotted wacoramaco87!

Also, the generous praise of my work miraculously healed the bout of writer's block I was suffering from and I have been writing like crazy. Honestly, your reviews were the best reward for the chapters already uploaded and the best incentive for working on the ones I am currently writing. Thank you all so much!

**Shyngr8**: I like your idea about showing Lucius' POV on a couple of things and it will certainly be in the story… at some point ;-) thank you for your lovely review, as always. And yes, I'm evil, for leaving it at that… Lucius is rubbing off on me ;-)

**Athena Linborn**: haha, another reviewer who thinks I am cruel! In this case, I'll take that as a compliment and hope you won't hold it against me. Your 'rambling' as you put it, is certainly helpful. Thank you for the input and the flattering review. Btw, this chapter is a bit longer than my chapters usually are ;-) Hope you like!

**CharmedLeoLvr**: well, I can say you most certainly will get your wish concerning Lucius and Hermione falling in love. I like your compliment on the Lucius/impostor-Lucius meeting. I thought Lucius is not the kind of man to charge into a room cursing and shouting and I am glad you seem to agree. Your comments on the story in general leave me blushing with pleasure. Thanx!

**Inell13**: I am glad you like the story so well. I am a HG/LM and HG/DM shipper myself, so I don't think that's contradictory at all. After all, both Malfoy men are gorgeous: why should we have to choose? Thanks for reviewing.

**Mary**: thank you for your review. The impostor will be revealed in due time - which translates roughly as: not just yet! Yes, I'm dragging it out; yes, I'm evil, but I think it works well for the story. ;-)

**Jo**: again, I am flattered you like the story. I rather like the previous chapter as well, even if I do say so myself. There is most certainly going to be Lucius/Hermione romance; it should start developing in the next couple of chapters.

**HoVis**: I am sorry, but I can't remedy the unfairness of having to do algebra, but I can do my best to make this story as good as possible, so that you may have something nice to look forward to when you're finished with your homework. Btw, my cold is much better! Thank you for reviewing!

**Shadowwarriorsangel**: I have heard before that the plotline is apparently unique, but it is very nice to get that compliment again. (checks… nope, still not fed up with it ;-)) I am glad you understand the stress of university life, although I do have two weeks off in two weeks time! Thank you for reviewing and I hope you enjoy further chapters.

**Star-Angel23**: I am so glad everybody's slightly miffed about the cliffie… it kinda hints at the fact that all of you are eager to know what will happen next! Thank you for reviewing :-)

**Webweaver**: wow. I am impressed with the amount of thought you have put in trying to unravel who the fake Lucius could be… I must say: I can't find fault with your reasoning anywhere! Thank you.

**Dedanaan**: your review really floored me, because I have a couple of HG/LM stories I like very well, even though in general there are relatively few. It's an honour you think my story is the best you've read so far. I thank you.

**Wackoramaco87**: I am getting very fond of your reviews, haha. I'm glad you like chapter ten so well: trust me it cost me some effort… I believe this was the third or fourth attempt ;-) Lots of HG/LM? Hm…yes, I think I can arrange that ;-) thanks for reviewing.

**Jaid Ziaen**: well, that was a certainly an eloquent review (note: I am NOT trying to be sarcastic here) I really love the fact you feel so strongly about our dear Lucius. And, since I am in charge of his universe for now, I can safely promise that 'the evil twin' will suffer. Greatly. ;-) Thank you for your lovely review!

**Sarcastic22**: you are so sweet! I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long for the next chapter. Btw; why sarcastic22 and not e.g. 23? (just curious, since 22 is my favourite number) Thanx for reviewing!

**Artemis Moonclaw**: you must be a great writer yourself, because with only five words, you have my heart fluttering with joy. Thank you so much for that and yes, I will continue this story: it's too much fun getting all these lovely reviews for me to give it up! :-)

**The Mad Madame**: now there's an interesting plot-idea. I must return the compliment I have gotten a couple of times, namely that this is a most original idea! I don't think anyone else has come up with that. Thank you.

**Sexy-jess**: wow, your review is so extensive, I don't even know how to begin to thank you for it. It's great you like the story so much, and that chapter seven made another victim ;-) The input for the story line is well thought-out as well and I thank you for putting in so much thought. Hope you like the next chapter.

**Aurelione**: you're the first person ever to compare my story to music and since I love music that in itself is a compliment. I don't think I am familiar with the song you are referring to, but I will make it a point to see if I can download it somewhere. Thank you for reviewing.

So…. the next chapter. This again is the umpteenth attempt…. Nowadays, when I start to write a chapter, I name the file something along the lines of: chapter x. 1st attempt, because it happens regularly that I am not happy with what I have written and start all over, thus creating the file chapter x. 2nd attempt and keeping the first attempt for reference, lol. I am simply unable to post a chapter I am not satisfied with myself.

Furthermore, since grovelling for reviews worked so well the last time, I would like to remind you that reading your reviews really motivated me to write new chapters ;-) Which means, if you leave me lots of reviews, you'll get a speedy update! ;-) Seriously though; reviews are greatly appreciated.

Now, lets get on with chapter eleven, in which the situation is explained to the Ministry and Lucius gets to give his counterpart a piece of his mind.

Enjoy.

* * *

To save a Malfoy 

Ch. 11 Meeting

Whatever the impostor got wrong when pretending to be Lucius Malfoy, it certainly wasn't the way he carried himself, thought Hermione as she looked at the genuine article sitting a little way over to her right. Amelia Bones had very sensibly suggested that the discussion that had started in Courtroom Ten with Lucius' entrance, to be continued in one of the Ministry's more private conference rooms. That's how the delegation from Hogwarts found themselves in precisely one of those, in the company of Cornelius Fudge, the other Lucius, closely guarded by two Aurors and of course the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement herself. Almost all of the Wizengamot members were sent home for the time being, since there was new evidence to be considered. Or so it seemed.

In the middle of the room was a large table, the short sides of which were straight, the long sides with a gentle outward curve to it. At the head of the table sat Amelia Bones, with Cornelius Fudge to her left and Albus Dumbledore to her right. The right side of the table was taken up entirely by the Hogwarts students and their Professor: Snape sat near the head of the table, next to Dumbledore, then Harry, Ron and Hermione. Directly opposite Hermione, on the left side of the table sat the impostor-Lucius, with two Aurors, leaning against the wall behind his chair, keeping vigilant eyes on the captive.

But it was not with either of them that Hermione's attention rested. Her gaze was fixed on Lucius Malfoy. She could not but admire him, as composed and confident as he managed to look, not the slightest hint of insecurity in either his behaviour or his countenance, even though this whole experience must be incredibly trying.

And yet, at the same time there was this unsettled feeling starting to make itself known at the pit of her stomach. For the man she was looking at now, was not the man she had come to know in the weeks she had treated his injuries. He looked more like the impostor than ever; his face was more unreadable than she had ever seen it, there was not a hint of warmth in his icy silver eyes. He was elegant, the deep red robes colouring perfectly with his pale skin and yet the most important thing was missing. And only now that it was no longer there, did she realise it had been there in the first place…his emotions had always been clearly visible to her. Even though he had been getting more distanced lately and tried to hide his emotions more, she mostly knew what he was feeling.

But not now. And it made her realise just how little she actually knew of this man. In the beginning it had been hard not to confuse him with the impostor, not to automatically see the old Lucius Malfoy; the one she had hated. Later she had all but forgotten about how she had thought about that man first. Because the name no longer belonged to the heartless man she had despised for years; the man that had caused so much grief and trouble for her and her friends. No, the name now belonged to the handsome and highly intelligent man that had been her patient; the one that could tease professor Snape and get away with it; the one whose love for his son was exuding from his every pore when the two of them were in the same room together.

But what did she actually know of him, the real Lucius Malfoy? Sitting here, looking at that expressionless face, she couldn't help but wonder.

Harry and Ron had just testified on how they had discovered Lucius after the Final battle. Looking at Lucius for the entire time, Hermione had only seen the tiniest hints of what his emotions were from time to time. The superior, almost arrogant confidence her former patient had managed to shroud himself in ever since they got ready to floo to the Ministry that morning, never faltered visibly. His features appeared stern this way, the lines that run from his nose to his jaw that would normally give him that certain aristocratic je-ne-sais-quoi now giving him a forbidding appearance.

Yet the young Gryffindor could not but admire his courage, as he sat at a mere couple of feet from the man who had made his own life pure torture for the past two decades and on top of that had deprived his son of a loving father when growing up. And he managed to listen to Ron's and Harry's testimony as if it concerned someone other than him.

Hermione had been studying Lucius so intently, she almost missed her cue, when she was asked to inform the Ministry officials of the details of the condition he had been in when being placed under her care.

Under the table, her hands were trembling where they lay on her thighs as she started her narrative.

"When Harry and Ron brought him to me, Mr. Malfoy was…"

"Excuse me, Miss Granger," interrupted Fudge, "but it still remains to be proven this man actually _is_ Lucius Malfoy."

Hermione felt her anger flare up at the remark. Bloody typical he would doubt Dumbledore's word rather than give him a little leeway to allow him to prove his point. Hadn't the man learned anything from his previous experiences?

She turned to face him, fighting to keep the contempt she felt from showing on her face. "I see your point, Minister," she managed to say flatly, "what would you suggest I call him then?" At this she managed to plaster an interested look on her face, as if she expected a sensible answer.

"Well… he…" Fudge started, before reaching the conclusion it was wiser to keep one's mouth shut when one had nothing to say. Unfortunately for him, this was exactly what Hermione had counted on.

"Since you realize that it is rather difficult to find an alternative and Professor Dumbledore, Professor Snape and I believe we will be able to sufficiently prove that this man is indeed the real Lucius Malfoy, would you kindly permit me to call him Mr. Malfoy for the time being?" she asked, a false sense of servitude to her question.

Fudge was smart enough to acquiesce with a nod of his head.

"As I was saying: when Harry and Ron brought him to me, Mr. Malfoy was in such bad shape, the Healers deemed him a loss of their time. He was severely underweight, had numerous broken bones, cuts and bruises, plus he was suffering from the effects of a rather serious pneumonia…."

As she got into her story more, Hermione relaxed and her hands moved graciously to stress certain points in her narrative. Most of those present listened intently to what she told, with the exception of Lucius, who sat there staring straight ahead stoically, and the impostor who looked like he was suppressing the urge to roll his eyes.

The young woman explained how they began to suspect the identity of her patient and what evidence there was to support this theory, with the exception of the Marauders' Map.

There was silence as she finished.

Amelia Bones turned to the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, sitting on her right.

"These are rather shocking new facts, Albus. If this is true, then the implications are very great indeed," she said matter-of-factly, "You do understand the Ministry will have to confirm the research you have already done."

"But of course," agreed the Headmaster graciously.

"Surely you cannot be serious!" said the man sitting opposite from Hermione, "you don't mean to accept this preposterous accusations on the flimsy evidence that that bunch – he gestured in the general direction of the Gryffindors and Snape – have just presented you with? It is highly circumstantial at best!"

Hermione felt her temper flare up again at the man's indignant tone of voice. The sheer nerve! But perhaps, seeing what this man had done already, it should not surprise her he attempted to deny what they were trying to prove.

Apparently she was not the only one feeling that way, for Professor Snape spoke up for the first time.

"I think the _highly circumstantial evidence_, as you put it, is enough to warrant further investigation at the very least. Nobody has said anything was officially proven," he commented acidly, fixing the man with one of his most intimidating glares.

The arrogant man sitting on the other side of the table laughed derisively at his comment.

"Oh Severus, how ironic _you_ of all people should say those words. It really doesn't suit you, you know; pretending to be a good little wizard," he said condescendingly.

"Do you really think it is wise to insult a member of the Order of the Phoenix?" asked Dumbledore, with disapproval in his voice.

"Am I the only one who sees how ludicrous this theory is?" the prisoner asked slightly annoyed. "Even if it were true, who's to say which one of us is the victim and which one is not?"

"Well for one, there's no Dark Mark on _father_'s arm," Draco interjected icily.

"How sickeningly sweet…the brat's already calling _you_ 'father' then?" For the first time, the fake Lucius addressed his counterpart.

As Lucius turned his icy glare on the man in the grey prisoner's robes, the similarity between the two men was more astounding than ever.

"Do not dare speak of my son," he threatened the other man, his voice low and deadly.

"Already one happy family reunion is it now?" the prisoner mocked, "Too bad you missed seeing him grow up." At this Hermione saw Lucius clench his fists at his sides, the first sign she had gotten all day that anything was getting to him.

"Don't you wonder if he had turned out differently if _you_ had been the one raising him?" the loathsome character continued, creasing his brow as if he genuinely wondered about it. "The difference between the two of us might not be as vast as you think. I mean, I have spent more time with _your_ family than you have." His tone had a sharp edge to it now. A small muscle in Lucius' jaw was twitching at the comment.

"Then again, maybe you would have coddled him." The man sounded decidedly bored as he continued: "I daresay you would have healed his leg right away when he broke it falling off his broom when he was eight."

Before anyone could react or even see what happened, Lucius had gotten up from his chair, reached over the table to grab the other man by his robes and yanked him from his seat. Their faces were only inches apart and his grey eyes were colder than Hermione had ever seen them, boring into the other man.

"Bask in you arrogance all you want," he said in that low, menacing voice, "but make no mistake: I'll find out just who you are and I. _will_ see to it that you receive the punishment you rightly deserve. And if you ever dare speak of my son in that manner again, I will make sure there is not enough left of you for the Dementors to kiss."

With that he threw the man back in his chair with force and sat back down again, his hands visibly shaking with the rage that was coursing through his veins. The other Lucius looked shocked and maybe even a little frightened for a moment, but he collected himself soon enough and managed to look as superior as ever.

Hermione was stunned at the sheer strength and danger exuding from the real Lucius; his smooth and lightning fast movement had surprised her. After all, as his medi-witch she knew he had had little time to train his body: she was baffled as to where he got the strength and the lethally fast reflexes to do what he just did. The only thing she could think was that his anger at finding out how his son had been mistreated and his protective instincts as a father were one hell of an incentive.

Looking around she saw the respect in Harry and Ron's eyes and Fudge was regarding Lucius in the same way as one might a puma; with something akin to awe, but knowing the creature in question was very, very dangerous. Amelia Bones was actually the one who had signalled the Aurors not to jump in as soon as they saw what happened. Hermione couldn't exactly identify what she saw in the older witch's shrewd eyes, but she had a sneaking suspicion that she was rather more accepting of the idea of 'their' Lucius really being Lucius Malfoy, than she had been ten minutes ago.

"Much as I hate to admit it," the grey-haired witch began, "he does have a point. Up till now I haven't heard much of the evidence you have to support your theory."

"Right you are, Amelia," said Dumbledore placidly. "But might I suggest we ask Narcissa Malfoy to join us? I think it is high time she was informed of the situation and she might be able to shed some more light onto the matter."

Hermione couldn't help but look at Lucius again: this was what he feared most about this day. His face still didn't betray any emotions to a casual observer, but Hermione saw the tightness in his features, giving away his inner turmoil. To her astonishment, she felt a nauseating feeling start in her own stomach and rise up to the back of her throat, on his behalf. Empathy was a quality to be praised in a medi-witch to be sure, but this was taking things a little too far, she thought with wry humour.

Amelia Bones nodded her assent and Fudge summoned a clerk to go and fetch Narcissa Malfoy. It was one of those strange experiences where time and sound seemed to be distorted into a strange parody of reality; bent like objects in a picture by Dali.

The silence in the room in anticipation of the upcoming events was leaden and the occasional rustle of a robe when someone shifted in his or her chair disproportionately loud. The only thing missing to help add the tension, at least to Hermione's Muggle mind, was a clock slowly and audibly ticking away the seconds. She mused at the strangeness of the moment. In a few minutes Lucius' wife would be stepping through that door, his biggest fear and greatest desire combined in one terrible moment. Now all was still tranquil, a deceiving silence before the storm was to burst out in all its fierce power. Now was a moment of possibilities; the outcome was still open. There was opportunity for great tragedy or great romance. And to be honest, Hermione didn't know which of the two to expect. It would probably be somewhere in between: life was rarely black and white. No, what was about to happen was going to be an interesting shade of grey; in-between of the extremes. But after that… it would all be over and done. And whether for good or bad, what had happened would have happened, no way to turn it back, no opportunity to go back to this moment of almost limitless possibilities.

The door opened.

* * *

"Do you have a minute?" 

Hermione looked up from her hunched position to see Harry's tousled black hair sticking around the door.

"Sure," she said wearily, returning to the task of tying her laces.

Harry took that as an invitation and stepped into the room, plopping down in a chair next to her.

"I was going to ask you how you were doing, but I think I already have my answer."

He gestured towards her attire. "You still go running when you're upset?" he asked.

She got up and tied her hair together in a ponytail.

"What gives you the idea I'm upset?" she asked.

"For one, you are trying to evade the question," Harry replied, his bright green eyes watching her intently. "Come on Hermione, we've known each other too long to be beating around the bush. You have been in a pensive mood ever since we left the Ministry."

"Pensive doesn't equal upset."

"No, running clothes equals upset."

'Damn,' Hermione thought, 'when did Harry get so observant?'

She studied him, her long-time friend. Like Draco, Harry and Ron grew up to be quite handsome young men. Harry's frame was more muscular than Draco's, although he was not as tall as the Slytherin. His black hair still was, and probably always would be messy; the potion to tame that hair still had to be invented. But the most attractive thing about Harry Potter by far was his emerald eyes. Even behind his glasses they sparkled with colour and fire.

"Harry, listen, I really don't want to talk about it right now. I wouldn't even know how to begin answer your question."

"You know you can talk to me anytime."

"I know Harry. And thank you. But right now I only want to go for a run," she looked him over, considering.

"Want to join me?"

Harry looked up, surprised. "What, you want me to go running with you?"

"Sure, why not? Keep me company," Hermione grinned half-heartedly.

"I thought you would want to be alone to brood while you run."

Hermione snatched a small pillow from a chair and threw it at her friend's head. He plucked it out of the air easily before it could even get near him.

"What? I am trying to be understanding!" Harry's eyes twinkled mischievously.

"If I wanted to be alone, I would not have asked you to come, now would I?"

Harry was looking at her as if she were a puzzle he was trying to solve. She had to suppress the urge to fidget under his considering stare.

"Just keep me company, okay?" she said softly.

"Let me change then," he said and drew his wand from his sleeve. An incantation later and Hermione was faced with a sight many women would love to see: Harry Potter in shorts. She supposed that he had nice legs, if one could say that of a man. They were well proportioned, slightly tanned and muscular. Much like the rest of him. The shirt hanging loosely from his shoulders did little to hide his broad chest and flat abdomen.

Yep, old Harry Potter was quite a catch. Sometimes it was almost too bad she could only think of him as the brother she never had, Hermione thought.

The two of them left the castle and after a quick stretch started to run along the path that led to the lake. It was a rather cold night, but the air was clear and actually quite pleasant for running.

They didn't talk, the only sound accompanying them the regular thudding of their shoes on the path. Slowly, as her body adjusted to the exercise, Hermione felt the tension starting to drain away. The jumbled thoughts that had been going through her head ever since that afternoon, disappeared to the background, seemingly unimportant for now. The only thing that mattered was running. Just putting one foot in front of the other, the rhythm of her movements, her heartbeat, her breathing.

Beside her, Harry could keep up easily. He had always been in excellent shape and he had made it a point ever since he started Auror training, to keep up his physical fitness as well as train his magical skills. Hermione glanced over at him. The most powerful wizard of the world and he was one of her best friends. On moments like these she realised just how special he was. Harry caught her eye and just smiled. He was so much more relaxed now that Voldemort had been defeated. Everyone around him had noticed the gradual change that was taking place in him. He had always been so very serious, almost forgetting how to have fun ever since Sirius had died. And who could blame him? The responsibility resting on his shoulders as a teen was more than enough to cause most grown-ups to crack. But somehow he had borne it all and now, with the prophecy fulfilled at long last, Harry Potter could finally relax. It became him.

"So, have you decided what you want to do yet?" asked Hermione, when they were about halfway around the lake.

Harry shrugged; an awkward sight when done during a run.

"I haven't decided yet. The only thing I know is that I don't want to be an Auror."

The female Gryffindor nodded. The training had only been because of Voldemort, the prophecy hanging over his head for half his life; she could well imagine, now that he was free of all that, he didn't want to have anything to do with fighting dark wizards.

"I have gotten some offers to do a try-out for Quidditch. And the Ministry offered me some fancy job as a foreign relations wizard. Fudge probably wants to show off the saviour of the wizarding world."

This last statement was delivered with a healthy amount of sarcasm, directed at everybody's favourite Minster of Magic. Hermione glanced sideways and flashed a grin.

"Ooh, tempting," she mocked.

"Oh, and the twins also offered me a job, only on the understanding of course that I would be very badly paid and mistreated, seeing I am going to be a guinea pig to test their newest products on," Harry grinned.

Hermione started laughing in spite of herself.

"Harry, that is horrible!"

"Actually, I thought it was quite a nice gesture. I am seriously considering it. Of course it is nothing compared to Fudge's compelling offer, but it comes in a nice second."

"Fudge is an incompetent fool," Hermione commented, the strain audible in her voice. The-boy-who-lived-yet-again knew her well enough to know when to keep silent.

For a moment there was once again only the sound of their feet thudding on the fallen leaves.

"I just can't believe how he behaved today! Looking all smug and self-righteous and interrupting all the time. If he weren't the Minister of Magic, I would give him a piece of my mind. In fact, when this is all over and done with, I might do just that!"

She fumed for a couple of minutes, before continuing: "As if it weren't already hard enough on Lucius, without him second-guessing everything we told him. As if Dumbledore would interrupt the hearing of the most notorious Death Eater of the past decades based on some unfounded suspicions!"

"Like you said, Hermione, the man is incompetent. I think second-guessing everybody else is an attempt to cover up his own failures. There's little doubt in my mind he realises he closed his eyes to the truth for too long."

"Why does Lucius have to be the victim of that? Do you know how nervous he was about seeing Narcissa again? And then the scene we caused when we entered the Atrium. I realised people would be pretty mad, but I never thought they would make that so abundantly clear with Dumbledore there. Rather naïve, huh?"

Without realising it, she slowed down.

'_Narcissa Malfoy really is a beautiful woman,' Hermione thought as she looked at the stately blonde that had just stepped into the conference room._

_Like Lucius, she had an undeniable gift to exude confidence, although with her it seemed more of an acquired skill, while with Lucius it appeared to be a quality he had had since birth._

_Nevertheless, as she realised how stunning Narcissa looked in pale lilac robes –in spite of the disdainful look on her face- she felt a strange pang in her stomach._

"_Minister Fudge, could you please explain why the proceedings are delayed?" she asked, politely, but with a hint of annoyance in her voice. Of course she would address the Minister. Nobody else in the room was worthy of the notice of the wife of Lucius Malfoy._

"_There have been some unexpected... eh… developments," said Fudge and he gestured to the other end of the table, where the two Luciuses sat. Time froze._

_And then, she turned around._

"You really care about him, don't you?" Harry's voice abruptly broke through her train of thoughts.

"Who?" she asked absent-mindedly, focusing on his emerald eyes with difficulty in the darkness.

"Your patient."

Hermione was going to deny it to the extent that she cared for all her patients in much the same way and that Lucius was no different, but the words got stuck in her throat. Probably without realising it, Harry had made her see that Lucius was not just another patient to her. Maybe it was because of the anger she had felt, when Harry and Ron had told her the Healers didn't even want to give him a chance or maybe because of the mystery that had been surrounding him from the very start. Or the fact that he proved to her that she knew nothing of the real Lucius Malfoy and instead of hating the man –as she had done his counterpart- she actually liked him very much.

"Hermione?" Harry called and she realised she had been silent for too long.

Quickly she glanced at him, a faint blush covering her cheeks, mercifully hidden by the dark night.

"It is just that he has been through so much already. I think he has earned it to be happy for once," she said quietly, having stopped walking altogether without noticing it herself.

Her friend had come to a halt next to her and once again his green eyes were boring into hers.

"Of course, all of us do," he acknowledged, "but I just can't shake the feeling that there is more to it…"

Hermione was saved from having to answer by someone running down the sloping lawns leading up to the castle, shouting her name urgently.

In unison, she and Harry broke into a run to meet the black-robed figure halfway, only to discover it was Draco Malfoy. Hermione frowned. He had accompanied his father and mother back to the Manor: what was he doing back here, late at night and making such racket at that?

"Hermione…" he panted, trying to catch his breath, "come…" He grabbed her hand and started pulling her back in the direction of the castle. "You must hurry: my father…."


	12. Anxiety

**Disclaimer**: still no copyright infringement intended. I am not getting anything out of this except for the sheer pleasure of reading reviews in which readers call me evil and horrible ;-)

**AN**: I am so sorry! As I explained before, I do not really choose where to end the chapters, they all sort of have a natural ending. So the cliffies are just a naturally occurring phenomenon and I cannot be blamed for them. Really, I cannot!

I am delighted to read all your lovely reviews and again you have made me outrageously happy. However, all the laments about the cliffie did make me feel kind of guilty, so I have done my best to write as fast as I could.

I know I have been teasing you a lot, by not telling what happened in the courtroom, or how Narcissa took the news etc. etc. and you'll be pleased to learn that this chapter should clear up a couple of the questions the previous chapters have generated :-)

**Tracy3**: you asked for a speedy update? Well, as long as I don't have three chapters prepared, this is as speedy as it gets! I hope you enjoy this chapter and thank you for reviewing!

**Angel-in-Gold666**: thank you for your review. Hope you like this next post!

**Jaid Ziaen**: haha, I had to read your review at least three times before I sort of felt I got all of it. It was great! Loved it! A friend of mine (who anxiously follows my progress as a fanfic writer) remarked that you were sort of vehement. Just a tad ;-) But she thought it was great and so do I. I love the fact that my scribbling can inspire such emotions. Thank you so much for taking the time to write such an elaborate review and feel free to repeat the gesture any time you like! Hope you like this chapter as well.

**Mary**: thank you for the compliments. Well, you're waiting is over…for now.

**Wackoramaco87**: thanks for the compliment on my description of LM. I do my best to show you how I see his character, but he is a pretty tough one to get across nicely. Your remark, therefore, is very welcome. Although this chapter is going to show another side to Lucius' character, so I hope you'll like that as well. Thanx for the wonderful review!

**Aurelione**: about the study; I heard about it a long time ago in a lecture and this is what I remembered. Athena Linborn mentioned that she is quite familiar with it, maybe she could help you out here. As for the rest of your reviews: I am so grateful everybody likes it so well. Your reviews are another two that leave me with a big smile on my face. I am planning on slowly slipping in more romance, but of course, I'll also have to explain what happened to Lucius all this time ;-) As for music: I like all sorts music, from classical to pop, some rock. We could discuss it in more detail by e-mail if you'd like. Thank you so much for the sweet, kind reviews.

**The Mad Madame**: you are on to me! To be honest; I left out what happened at the Ministry after five aborted attempts to describe it: I just couldn't do it to my own satisfaction, so I avoided the problem by skipping the entire scene for the time being. I must say it works well, because in the later chapters, somehow I did manage to explain what happened at the Ministry nicely ;-) I will resolve a couple of things for you in the chapter I'm posting now, so some of your questions should be answered soon. Thanks for reviewing!

**Jo**: Well, I'll do my best to make this a well-written HG/LM romance. Hope to hear your opinion on it, whenever you like. Thank you.

**Pallas Athena1**: your review is exceptionally generous. It means so much to me that you like my story, because I adore 'Grey' (anyone not reading that particular story yet: if you like HG/LM, you're definitely missing out on something… Do something about it!!!) Especially your compliment about building up the tension: I am glad the sequence I am using seems to be working well, for I thought about it a lot! Thank you so much :-)

**Star-Angel23**: I can well imagine you having had bad experiences with this pairing. My whole plotline developed from me thinking about how to make Lucius a 'good guy' (enough for Hermione to fall in love with him, at least) without assassinating his character completely. Many HG/LM stories are totally unrealistic, because Lucius turns to the other side of the war overnight for no apparent reason. As if! He needs a compelling reason to do that. Grey, which I think is an exceptionally well-written HG/LM, avoids this problem very nicely, by using Lucius' love for Draco as a motivation for him to turn to the other side. I think that works really well. Thank you for the review and don't worry about it being a tad late: it gives me something to look forward to :-)

**Shadowwarriorsangel**: (if your name is spelled incorrectly again, I apologize: FFN swallows the underscore) I am so sorry for causing you distress with my cliffies…I really can't help it! Honestly! ;-) Good luck with your analysis homework (it sounds really dreary) and I hope this new chapter will ease some of your curiosity. Thanx for reviewing.

**AriannaMalfoy**: Well, I am listening to you, since I have not yet finished the next chapter and I am updating already. Normally I don't do that, but all of you were so curious to find out what happened and so mad at me for the cliffies, that I could not but ease your suffering ;-) I hope you enjoy this next chapter and at least some questions should get answered.

**CharmedLeoLvr**: ok, just to prevent another heart attack… there might be a slight, little, barely perceptible cliffie in this chapter as well (ducks under her desk) Thank you so much for reviewing and I hope I have not tried your patience too badly.

**Artemis Moonclaw**: How do you do that? Three words and I am happy. Thank you for reviewing!

**Epona Rosa**: I am glad you like my story. Dankjewel voor de review :-)

**Shyngr8**: only you are allowed cliffhangers? (starts laughing) Oh, and could I please put in some more plotline, before I write the happy ending? ;-) And about your last remark, (chanting in an annoying sing-song voice): patience is a virtue, dear! ;-) Thank you for the nice review, as always :-)

**Mysticdarkraven**: I am running out of nice things to say! Thank you for the review and I hope the next chapter is to your liking as well!

**Sexy-jess**: thank you. Now, I really have run out of nice things to say. This is so great! Thank you for the lovely review and enjoy the next chapter!

Wow. It took me about an hour to thank all of you guys. And it is worth every single minute! Your reviews are lovely. Even when all of you say I am evil and/or naughty and/or cruel and ask me how I sleep at night.

You did, however, manage to make me feel rather guilty about the cliffhanger, so I am pretty glad that this next chapter happened to contain some answers to the many questions I have been creating in your heads.

Not all of them, of course… where would be the fun in that, I ask you? ;-) Since I thought Lucius was handling all that was happening a little too well, I upped the drama a bit in this chapter and therefore it is also quite a long chapter. I have a sneaking suspicion though, that you won't mind ;-)

So here it is: chapter twelve, in which some of what happened at the Ministry is explained and Lucius loses his temper.

* * *

To save a Malfoy 

Ch. 12 Anxiety

By the time she arrived at the door of what Hermione still considered to be Lucius' room, she was slightly out of breath. Next to her Draco sent her a hasty, pleading look, before opening the door quickly.

Rushing through the room to where Lucius lay on the bed, she was hardly aware of Narcissa standing elegantly next to the fireplace.

Lucius was looking pale and breathing fast. His eyes were closed and there was a thin sheen of perspiration on his forehead. She also saw that the top few buttons of his robes were undone.

In an instinct that had been imbedded in her too long ago to be overruled by the magical skills she had developed over the years, she placed the back of her hand against his forehead, then his temples and cheeks. At her touch his eyes fluttered open.

He smiled weakly and made a move to sit up, but she firmly pressed his shoulders back down.

"Miss Granger..." his voice sounded hoarse.

"Hello Lucius," she greeted him, "explain to me why your son is dragging me from my evening run?"

Again that feeble smile.

"I don't feel well..." he said, looking up at her apologetically, "...very nauseous."

Hermione nodded in understanding and began casting some diagnostic spells.

"Anything else?"

"My chest hurts..."

"Where?"

He lifted his hand and placed it on top of his breastbone. "Here."

The young woman cast another spell.

"Does your left arm hurt, or your jaw?" she asked. Behind her, she could sense Narcissa taking a step closer, as if to question her, but for the moment she ignored it and concentrated on her patient.

Lucius shook his head in response to her question. Hermione frowned. None of the spells she had cast had come up with anything and his skin was cool rather than hot to the touch. She glanced over her shoulder at Draco, who stood right behind her, looking down in concern on his father.

"Did he lose consciousness at any time?"

"No, thank Merlin!"

She turned back to face her patient and stared down at him considering. While turning things over in her mind, she started rubbing her forehead with the fingers of her left hand. Her thinking process was disrupted by a cultured voice.

"Do you have much experience, Miss Granger?"

Hermione turned back to face the elegant blonde behind her. Narcissa was still wearing the lilac robes she had worn that afternoon to the Ministry and somehow she managed to look distressed, disdainful and yet very elegant all at the same time. The younger woman thought idly she would have been content if she herself could convey even one of those emotions half as well as Narcissa could.

"Don't worry Mrs Malfoy," she said evenly, "we will take good care of your husband."

At the word 'husband' it seemed as if Narcissa was going to speak up, but she appeared to think better of it.

"It is nothing personal, Miss Granger, but I don't understand why we could not simply have flooed medi-wizard Harris, our family physician. He knows our family very well, you see and now we have disturbed your evening run, I'm afraid."

Hermione nodded in understanding.

"It's quite alright. I don't mind. After all, Lucius has been my patient for quite some time," she explained pleasantly.

Somehow, however, that wasn't the right response, for she saw a flash of emotion flicker up in the older woman's eyes.

"I beg your pardon, but I do think it rather strange you are calling Mr. Malfoy by his given name," she interjected, her voice soft and feminine, "After all -she hesitated slightly- he is numerable years your senior and from… respectable family." Her eyes flicked over Hermione's –obviously Muggle– attire: a pair of pale blue running pants and matching top, with a short, midnight-blue sweater tied around her waist.

Hermione wondered if her father and mother had just been insulted, but she decided to pretend she hadn't heard that particular comment and instead replied to the first part.

"I can well imagine it must sound strange to you," she said in a sweet tone of voice, "but I have treated your husband for about one and a half months; I have gotten to know him and he has kindly permitted me to call him by his given name."

"Oh, how awkward," said Narcissa, although she did not look particularly embarrassed.

"I assure you it is quite alright," Hermione said. Suddenly she snapped her fingers and turned back to Lucius once again. This time as she cast the spell –a little-used diagnostic spell she had just remembered- a pale blue shimmer appeared. She smiled in satisfaction.

"What is it?" Draco asked anxiously from behind her. Hermione noticed that Lucius' gaze was immediately directed at his son, smiling reassuringly.

"This last spell confirmed my suspicions," she began explaining, "that there's nothing physically wrong." She looked over her shoulder at her friend.

"Your father's distress was merely caused by a simple anxiety attack."

She smiled reassuringly at Lucius: there was relief in his eyes and another emotion she couldn't quite decipher.

"You mean to tell me that the chest pain and the nausea came from sheer nerves?" Narcissa asked politely.

Hermione turned to face her. "That is exactly what I mean to tell you, yes," she responded evenly.

"How can you be sure? Should you not cast some more spells?"

The younger woman inwardly started to count to ten patiently, while answering: "I assure you Mrs Malfoy, there is no need for concern. I can understand you would be a little shaken by all this, but your husband is fine."

"But he was at home. Would it not make more sense for this to have happened this afternoon, at the Ministry, if it is caused by emotional strain?"

Again, that polite, cultured voice, in a tone with just enough softness and femininity infused into it to convey the anxiousness of a worried wife. Somehow, it made Hermione feel unreasonably annoyed. Before she could respond however, Draco spoke up.

"Mother, I am sure this is all very distressing for you as well. Why don't you come with me and I will see to it you get a nice cup of tea, while Hermione takes another look at father, hm?" he quickly glanced in Hermione's direction at that last statement.

"My place is here, with your father," Narcissa admonished her son, in a gently chiding voice one would use on a twelve-year-old.

"Cissa…" came the tired voice of Lucius from behind Hermione. He had been so quiet she had almost forgotten he was –of course– still in the room.

"Just go with Draco, I'll be fine." The three others turned around to face him.

He smiled encouragingly at his wife. "Miss Granger won't let any harm come to me," he said lightly, his eyes flickering to Hermione briefly.

Narcissa could do nothing but admit defeat.

"Oh, I suppose," she said, with an elegant little shrug of her shoulders. Draco offered her his arm.

"Come, I'll show you the Slytherin common room," he said while leading her out of the room. He held open the door for her, while she looked up at him and said: "Are you sure this is alright? I do seem to remember Harris always performing more diagnostic spells than that…" her voice trailed off.

"I am quite sure, Mother," Draco said patiently, placing his hand on the small of her back and gently steering her out the door. "Mione's a genius."

Reaching for the door handle, his eyes met Hermione's and the infamous Malfoy smirk appeared on his face as he pulled up one eyebrow.

Hermione grabbed a hold of her imaginary skirts and curtseyed, before blowing him a kiss. With a soft, decisive 'click' the door shut.

"You and Draco certainly seem to understand each other quite well."

Hermione turned back to Lucius and smiled: "We've managed to establish a working relationship," she joked.

"How are you feeling now?"

"Slightly better. My chest doesn't seem to hurt anymore," he said quietly.

Unwillingly he added: "Although I still feel pretty nauseous."

The young woman nodded. "I could give you a potion, to help settle your stomach." While she said that, she walked to the supply closet and took out a small vial with a minty green content and a small terrycloth towel. She wetted the towel under the faucet and wrung it out. She filled a glass with cool water and carefully put three drops of the potion in it. One swirling motion of her wand and it stirred itself.

Lucius pushed himself into an upright position and accepted the potion silently. Hermione took the empty glass from his hand and handed him the towel. He took it and wiped his forehead, then pressed the cool cloth to his temples. After a minute he wiped his brow again, before he pressed his face into the welcome coolness. When he made no attempt to speak, Hermione sighed and sat down on the bed beside him.

"There's no reason to be embarrassed," she said softly.

He lowered the towel and looked at her in disbelief.

"Why do you always have to presume to know what is going on in other people's minds?"

Hermione blinked in surprise at the unexpected question; was there a hint of annoyance in Lucius' tone?

"Excuse me?" she managed.

"What gives you the idea you know me well enough to deduce how I am feeling?" Hermione just stared at him, a little baffled and slightly unsettled about this sudden attack.

"You… I just… you looked kind of miserable, that's all," she said lamely.

"I was feeling pretty miserable as well, but that doesn't imply you can go around and randomly start telling me there's no need to be embarrassed."

He pushed himself off of the bed and began pacing the room angrily.

All that Hermione could do, was stare at him, with a look that clearly said what-did-I-do? His reaction surprised her, to say the least.

Up until now he had always been so very collected. He even surpassed her expectations often, like today at the Ministry: she could not have blamed him, if he had been angry at the people for what they had yelled at him, while he was actually innocent… furious at his counterpart for Draco's sake: when the bastard implied he had eight-year-old Draco suffer from a broken leg for a while when he could have healed it in an instant, she had felt her own stomach lurch and a very unladylike urge to get up and slap him in the face.

And yet all that Lucius had done was to grab the man by the collar and give him a piece of his mind. Nobody had to pull him off, nobody had to talk sense into him… it had been amazing: the power radiating off of him at that time. She was certain there had been no-one in the room who doubted Lucius could indeed be very dangerous if he so wished. And now, when they were in the safety of Hogwarts, he lost his temper.

Frankly, Hermione had no idea how to handle this new side of Lucius. She was at a loss as to determine what she had done wrong.

Maybe he was just stressed out, she thought. After all, that last diagnostic spell had clearly indicated -not very surprisingly- his stress hormone levels were through the roof. She studied his quick, angry strides, the red robes snapping around his legs briskly, while the partly unbuttoned robes and the slightly dishevelled hair added to the picture of distress. At least he was well enough again to be angry and pacing, she thought philosophically.

Without noticing it, her gaze had grown soft, as compassion coloured its depths. As if feeling her gaze on him, Lucius stopped pacing abruptly, his head snapping up to look her directly in the eye.

"Stop that, right now!" he demanded.

Hermione was genuinely confused.

"Stop what, Lucius?"

"That look you're giving me," he paused, looking for the appropriate word, "the _compassion_." His face contorted as if he were looking at something rather nasty, "I don't want it!"

All Hermione could do is pull up her eyebrows in surprise; oh yes, this was definitely an unexpected side of Lucius... Not to mention his change of temper was rather drastic and very sudden.

"Alright, no compassion then," she said as calmly as she could manage.

After all, with all the emotional strain put on him, the Ministry hearing, meeting his rival, Narcissa, Fudge wanting more proof of their theory… who could blame Lucius for finally snapping?

When she thought about Fudge's comments of that afternoon, her own blood began to boil. And Narcissa… Narcissa was an enigma. As Lucius predicted, she took the news of finding out about him quite calmly.

_Narcissa's pale blue eyes grew wide as she turned around and was confronted with the two Luciuses. The one in the prisoner's robes was staring back at her defiantly, while the man in the deep red robes sat ramrod straight in his chair, his face a careful blank and his eyes directed somewhere just above his wife's head. She stared at the elegant man sitting next to her son in shock._

"_Lucius…" she whispered, choking on the name._

_The other occupants of the room watched in silence as Narcissa Malfoy-Black came to terms with the fact that at the moment she appeared to have two husbands._

_So sudden, that Hermione instantaneously understood where the turn of phrase 'to snap out of it' came from, the aristocratic woman regained her composure. In a voice as calm as if she were merely commenting on the bad weather they'd been having, she asked: "Would someone please explain what in Merlin's name is going on here?" _

Then again, she had been pretty pissed about being kept in the dark about all of this; Lucius had predicted that correctly as well. For someone who hadn't seen his wife in over twenty years, he was amazingly accurate.

"_Six weeks?" Narcissa asked. She didn't screech. Neither did she raise her voice. She didn't even look particularly angry. Vaguely incredulous was probably a better description. And yet Cornelius Fudge, who the question was directed at, seemed to be ducking his head almost imperceptibly. From the corner of her eye, Hermione thought she saw Lucius (the real Lucius) suppress a grin._

"_Mrs Malfoy, please understand neither the Ministry nor I had any knowledge of this whole…-he searched for the right word- situation, until a mere couple of hours ago. If we had, you would have been notified immediately, of course."_

_Hermione suppressed the urge to snort: naturally Fudge would immediately try to shift the blame. Although, for once, he was actually telling the truth, even if ignoring the fact that Lucius probably wouldn't have been found at all, if it had depended on the Ministry's efforts –hell, Voldemort would have won the war, if things had depended on the Ministry's efforts._

_Narcissa was nodding pensively in reaction to the Minister's statement._

"_I believe you just mentioned…-here she hesitated almost imperceptibly- Mr Malfoy was treated for his injuries at Hogwarts? I had heard Madam Pomfrey was among the fallen: have I been misinformed, then?"_

_At this, Albus Dumbledore shook his head sadly, the twinkle absent from his eyes. Narcissa directed her gaze at him._

"_Regretfully, you were not," he said. Correctly guessing what it was the aristocratic woman really wanted to know, he continued: "Mr Malfoy was treated by Miss Granger."_

_This statement proved to be one of the few that had been made that day, which managed to get a visible reaction from the woman. Reflexively she drew breath to speak up, while she looked over at Hermione for the first time since she had entered the room. Checking herself just in time, her mouth closed again and if it hadn't been for the fact that Hermione had been watching the other woman avidly, she highly doubted she would have seen the response at all; it was suppressed that quickly. In a strange way, it reminded her of what she had seen Lucius do in the past weeks._

"_At least he wasn't badly injured then. I am glad to hear that," Narcissa said. "I am sure Miss Granger will turn out to be an adequate medi-witch some day." The corners of her mouth twitched up briefly in a fleeting impression of a smile._

_Before anyone had even time to respond to that remark, she continued._

"_Still, that doesn't answer my question why I was not informed of these new developments. Seeing that I am the wife of Lucius Malfoy, I rather think this does concern me, do you not, gentlemen?"_

"_We acted in a way that was most likely to promote Mr Malfoy's safety and wellbeing," Albus Dumbledore said in a calm tone of voice. Hermione thought she heard an almost imperceptible emphasis on the word 'wellbeing' but when she looked at the wizened wizard, his countenance was serene._

"_As Mr Malfoy's wife, I assure you I would have acted likewise," the blonde woman answered, her voice just a bit icy. _

_From the other side of the table came a soft sound when the man in the grey robes exhaled loudly. Narcissa looked over to where the two men were sitting, at a mere couple of feet from each other, similar like two drops of water._

"_Then again…" Narcissa let her voice trail off, as if she were thinking about a particularly puzzling problem, "…can anyone enlighten me as to which one of these two gentlemen actually _is_ my husband?" _

Who could blame Lucius for being somewhat irrational in a situation like this? Who could blame him for losing his temper? And yet, it had not happened then and there. No, it took the long-lost surroundings of Malfoy Manor to cause an anxiety attack and it took a trip to Hogwarts and an examination by the one person, who he had trusted implicitly when he did not even know to whom the voice he obeyed without question belonged to, for him to let go of the iron self-control she had seen him exhibit all day.

Hermione really was at a loss what to do. Lucius had resumed his pacing and seemed to be oblivious of her presence, at least for now. On the danger of being caught at it and being snapped at again, she studied his features.

His brow was furrowed and his eyes brooding. He seemed to be deep in thought and unpleasant thoughts at that. Every now and then his lips moved, as if he were speaking to himself. It was a most unexpected insight into the complicated person who was placed in her care by Harry and Ron so many weeks ago.

His behaviour seemed to confirm her suspicions that all the happenings of the day could not have missed their effect on him. From what she knew, he was aware of the actions and reputation of his counterpart. It would have been inhumanly cruel not to explain that to him in advance, since the average witch and wizard hated 'Lucius Malfoy' and what he stood for with a passion.

Nevertheless, it was one thing to know on a purely rational level that the man who had the management of his reputation for the past twenty years had done nothing to improve his popularity with the general public; it was something different entirely to stand in the middle of a crowd that was jeering at you, hoping you'd be condemned to the Dementor's kiss, cursing you for their children's death.

It was something different entirely to actually _feel_ their hatred.

Her attention snapped back to Lucius when he sighed deeply. The young woman noticed that he had stopped pacing, his back turned to where she sat. Uncharacteristically, his shoulders seemed to droop, making him look very tired.

Hermione's medi-witch instincts kicked in with a vengeance, practically screaming at her to get up and do something, anything to make him feel better. With considerable effort, she squelched the impulse and remained seated on the bed. She had no particular desire to be on the receiving end of that glare Lucius had sent her way earlier -again- if she could avoid it. No wonder he and Professor Snape had been friends when they were in Hogwarts together; they must have practised and perfected that glare between the two of them.

Finally, Lucius turned around to face her and, taking a deep breath, he said: "Miss Granger… I am sorry for snapping at you like that."

From her vantage point on his bed, it looked like it cost him considerable effort to say those few words. Hermione cocked her head and studied him. For the first time she could remember, he looked decidedly uncomfortable under her considering gaze.

Maybe that was because now she was not looking at his body; she was not looking to see if those wounds were healing properly or if he was gaining enough weight. No, this time she was studying his features, his eyes, his body language, trying to ascertain what he was feeling… and hiding from her. Unconsciously, she started to nod her head lightly, her observations confirming her thoughts on the matter.

So maybe she didn't have a vast experience with patients of his kind (fortunately there were only few) and maybe she didn't have the first clue what Lucius was really like. But she was willing to bet a considerable amount of books that he hadn't talked to anyone about what this whole thing was doing to him.

Narcissa, even though she was his wife and he loved her, was at the moment little more than a stranger to him. By Circe, they had only met a couple of hours ago!

And she had witnessed his interactions with Draco often enough to know that Lucius tended to shield his son as much as possible from the 'unpleasantries' of his fate, even though Draco himself asked for no such thing.

Professor Snape had been his friend for long years and Hermione knew Lucius trusted him like he trusted almost no other man, but Snape was not your average agony aunt.

Which left only herself and she was pretty sure that he hadn't spoken to her either. Instead, he snapped at her and told her he didn't want her compassion.

Seeing it like that, there was only one thing to do…

"I must say it rather vexes me that you lash out at me like that," she said, her voice decidedly cooler than it normally was, "after all, it is _you_ who came to see _me_, Mr Malfoy."

To her satisfaction, she saw a flicker of hurt in his eyes when she called him Mr Malfoy. When there was just the two of them, she had never called him 'Mr Malfoy'; with her he had always been 'Lucius'.

"I know. And I do apologize… today has been such a tiring, trying day and…"

"I don't think," she interrupted him, "that having a trying day is an excuse for snapping at someone who's only trying to help you." She made sure to keep her eyes fixed firmly on his, not wavering for a second. This time there was a flicker of another emotion in his eyes, but he suppressed it rather quickly.

He couldn't prevent however, that his voice sounded a little strained when he replied: "Again, Miss Granger, I do apologize. But I don't think my transgression was quite so grave as your reaction seems to indicate. Nor do I think the day I had today could be considered just 'trying'."

"First of all, whether or not my response is in proportion to your transgression is not up to _you_ to decide. And second, you used the word 'trying' yourself to describe your day, so I don't see how you can find fault with me using it as well," Hermione sniped.

"Since you apparently lack enough insight into the human psyche to make the assessment for yourself, I will, in future, consider my adjectives with more care," Lucius responded icily.

"Please do," Hermione responded getting up from the bed, sarcasm dripping from her tone, "then maybe, in future, sensible people may actually have a chance at understanding what in Merlin's name is going on behind that icy façade of yours!"

"How hard can it be?" snapped Lucius, "Is it so hard to imagine I am furious with that man? Not only did he join the Dark Lord and do unspeakable things, but everybody thinks that it was _me_! He utterly ruined my reputation and it will take me years to rebuild a semblance of what it was if I can even manage that!" Without noticing it himself, he had resumed pacing in front of Hermione and he was gesturing furiously while he spoke.

"And pray tell, what do you think a man feels when he sees his wife for the first time after being held captive for twenty years? When he sees she is every bit as beautiful as when he last saw her? When he hears her voice is just as soft and feminine? When he realises he has missed out on twenty years of her company?"

By now Lucius every now and then threw her a look that clearly spoke of his anger: his eyes were fierce and there seemed to be energy crackling around him, as if his fury was shrouding him like a cloak. Like before in the meeting room of the Ministry it was abundantly clear that Lucius Malfoy was not to be trifled with.

"And that is not the worst of it," he continued heatedly, "When he was taunting me about my family, I had such a vulgar longing to feel my fist connect with his face… that remark about not healing Draco's leg, when he broke it. The boy was eight, for Merlin's sake: how can you let an eight-year-old break his leg and not heal it immediately? I was livid!" The volume of his voice was rising fast.

"And then to think this man was my son's father for most of his life. For taking such poor care of the most precious thing in my life, I was sorely tempted to break his bloody neck!"

His tirade ended abruptly and Lucius came to a stop only a few metres from Hermione, breathing rather heavily.

The young medi-witch looked him in the eyes calmly and said in her normal tone of voice: "Break his neck? Sounds reasonable."

Lucius' eyes widened in realisation and he drew in a sharp breath.

"You snake," he whispered, his voice a huge contrast to what it had been a couple of moments before, "you tricked me!"

Hermione smiled tentatively at him, her eyes searching his for signs that he was furious with her. Finding none, she replied: "Coming from a Slytherin, I'll take that as a compliment."

She took a few tentative steps in his direction. "Feel a bit better now?" The concern was clearly visible in her amber gaze.

Unable to speak for a moment, Lucius nodded haltingly, looking down at her, amazement in his eyes.

"Although I would feel better if I hadn't been tricked by a _Gryffindor_," he added, heartfelt.

Hermione chuckled as she realised he, like the Potions Master, made the word 'Gryffindor' sound like it was an insult.

"If it helps: I have found that in the company of Slytherins, people obviously tend to consider _them_ the most dangerous, and in the process very often forget to consider the Gryffindors as a threat at all." She paused and smirked at him in a way to rival Draco. "I have been known to take advantage of that fact."

"That's a very Slytherin way of reasoning Miss Granger," Lucius commented in a low voice. "For a Gryffindor," he added, his grey eyes looking down into her own. For now they were willingly showing her the emotions in their depths and she was glad to see that there was at least some Dumbledorian twinkling going on.

"I have found there are at least _some_ Slytherin qualities in all of us, even the _Gryffindors_" Hermione gave the word 'Gryffindors' the same twist any self-respecting Slytherin used. To her surprise, he burst out laughing.

She was laughing softly herself when all of a sudden his mood swung around. His face suddenly fell and before she had time to react, he had hidden his eyes behind his hand, mumbling: "Oh God…"

Hermione acted directly in response to the choked sound of his words and was right beside him in two quick strides. Tentatively she put a hand on his right shoulder and tried to peer up at his face, half-hidden beneath his hand. She could feel the tense trembling in his shoulders, as he tried to hold back the emotions that were running rampant and she was resolved not to let him succeed.

Gently, practically exuding the compassion she felt for him and her admiration for his strength, she slid her arms around his tall frame and pulled him close against her own body.

After hesitating only the briefest moment, she felt his arms come down around her shoulders and he pulled her against him tightly.

She remained still, allowing him to draw strength from their embrace. With her nose pressed tightly against his robes, she learned to appreciate the satiny smoothness of the expensive material.

A faint scent of cologne, clean, masculine and with a hint of decadence in it, pleasantly tickled her nostrils. The warmth of his embrace was very nice as well and Hermione was surprised to note that she felt completely satisfied, just standing there, with his arms around her, his tall frame against hers and her nose filled with his exceptionally pleasant smell.

She could still feel the trembling in his muscles and the occasional shudder, while he slowly let go of the tight control on his emotions. Almost automatically his face was buried in the masses of soft curls falling on her shoulders.

"It was so hard," Lucius whispered hoarsely.

Hermione nodded her understanding, her hand starting to stroke through the silky, blond hair in a soothing motion, reminiscent of how she had comforted him when he had those horrible nightmares.

"I know," she said softly, "you did brilliantly."

"I was so furious… Draco…" Again, she could feel a shudder going down his spine.

Hermione felt so much compassion for him and she wanted to help this man so much. Ever since the first time she had laid eyes on him, he had awoken all her instincts to nurture and protect.

Her hands were very gentle as she stroked his hair away from his face, enjoying the feel of the soft, silky strands under her hands as much as the caress soothed his frayed emotions.

She disentangled herself from him just a bit, so she could look him in the eyes. They were shining suspiciously and once again she was allowed to see the emotion in their depths.

"Oh Lucius…" she sighed at the sadness in his eyes, "I am so sorry."

And then, she raised her head and pressed her lips against his.

She had only meant to console him and kissing him -even though she most certainly would _not_ have done that if she had taken the time to think it over- was done on an impulse born from that need to comfort him.

But as soon as her lips came into contact with his warm, soft skin it became something else entirely. A warm, tingly feeling that just came into existence in her belly the moment their lips met, started spreading through her body; she was highly aware of all different sorts of sensations overwhelming her senses: the softness yet firm texture of his lips, the slippery silkiness of his hair tangled between her fingers, the warmth of his body against her own, the surprising strength in the arms that were holding her close to him, the delicious, slightly tickling sensation that the slim hand buried in her hair was creating, the barely perceptible caress of the tips of his fingers on the sensitive skin of her neck and that glorious smell of his, that was even more appealing to her now.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, there was a nagging sensation that this was all wrong, that this was not what she had intended to happen. But when a tentative tongue gently licked the centre of her upper lip she could do nothing but allow him to deepen their kiss and tilt her head a bit to give him better access. As his tongue slowly invaded her mouth she tightened her hold on him and one hand started to rub his back slowly, mesmerising.

And even though there was still that nagging sensation, now even more in the background than it had been before, Hermione couldn't think of anything that had ever felt more right to her.

Combing her hand through his long blond hair caused Lucius to shudder lightly in pleasure and she revelled in his delight.

Neither of them, being so wrapped up in each other, noticed the door opening….

**AN**: In case anyone's interested: I was thinking of a very particular scent, when I described how Lucius smells. It's my favourite men's cologne, called 'Déclaration' by Cartier. This is my idea of how a man should smell and 'decadent' is definitely an adjective that describes it. In my opinion, it is the perfect smell for a man like Lucius…


	13. The trouble is

**Disclaimer**: it's a holiday; I'm officially off-duty… would I be working on this if I were getting paid for it?

**AN**: Wow. Just wow! I can't believe how many reviews I have gotten for the last chapter! I liked it rather a lot myself, because I got them to kiss for the first time and of course there is the mean cliffie that has you all wondering who catches them _in flagrante delicto_, so to speak.

I had some difficulties writing chapter 13. What you see down below is the revised version of my third attempt… or something like that. It took quite some time to get it good enough to post and I still have my worries. And then with Christmas, I went to my parents who don't have a computer, let alone internet access, so I couldn't work on it at all for 2,5 days. Speaking of Xmas…how was yours? Hope you all had terrific holidays and got wonderful presents!

Anyway… let's get on to the personal thank-you's. Btw: I am afraid that with the increasing number of reviews, it will be almost inevitable I am going to forget someone sooner or later. So in advance: I thank every single one of you who took the trouble to leave me a review and I apologise if I forget to thank you personally.

**CharmedLeoLvr**: wow, you are very generous, as always. Saying my story is the best HG/LM…. Your reviews make me so happy! I'll try not to tax your poor heart too much, okay? Thank you so much.

**Bemused**: hey! Don't know you yet, do I? Well thank you so much for the kind review and I hope you enjoy the new update!

**Artemis Moonclaw**: haha, twelve words! If I am able to increase the number of words you use in your review, I must be doing something right :-) Thank you!

**Wackoramaco87**: of course there will be more drama! Didn't you read my bio? Lol. Don't worry though: eventually everything will be all right! Thank you for the nice review and you'll be glad to find that this chapter is even longer than the last one.

**Mary**: thank you! Yes, that _is_ the question, isn't it? Who walks in on them? Well, bear with me and you'll find out.

**Sexy-jess**: definitely love capitals :-) I hope I didn't keep you guys waiting too long… if so; blame Christmas! Or to speak with Alan Rickman "Cancel the kitchen scraps for lepers and orphans, no more merciful beheadings, and call off Christmas!" (sorry, I am completely in love with Alan Rickman; I saw the first HP movie again and thought there really ought to be more Snape in there ;-) ) thanx for the review!

**Aurelione**: thank you so much for putting me at ease about the cliffies! That was really sweet of you! I wonder why you think Lucius will lash out at Hermione if Narcissa were to walk in on them? Could you please explain that to me, I'd rather like to hear your theories on that. As always, thank you for a wonderful review.

**Pallas Athena1**: I love to be called evil :-) I guess Lucius really _is_ rubbing off on me! Anyway, I consider it a big compliment I manage to keep your attention. Thank you. Btw are you going to update on 'Grey'? Please?

**Storygirl2009**: hi! Long time no see! I am glad you like the chapter so much… didn't need tissues, did you? ;-) anyway, another long chapter for you! Thank you for reviewing!

**Jaid Ziaen**: NO!!!! Please don't change anything about the way you review: I _love_ your reviews! Just the way they are. And I thought it was really funny and flattering, you asking me how I sleep at night, so if you ever feel the need to ask me that again; feel free to do so.

I was rather happy myself that they kissed :-) oh and yes, I do have compassion… I just also happen to like lots of reviews! ;-) thanks for yours!

**The "to save a Malfoy addicted analysis hating constant babbler (a.k.a. shadowwarriorsangel):** heehee, yes, I think we'd all like to kiss Lucius if we got the chance… or Jason Isaacs… too bad he's married, lol. Hm, you think Narcissa's a bit bitchy? Well, she is obviously not in the best of moods in chapter twelve. You'll see more of her in this chapter though, so you can re-evaluate. Thank you for the elaborate review!

**Shyngr8**: I'm speechless. I can't believe you envy me for my writing ability, while I am not altogether convinced it is any good at all. Thank you so much for that kind review and I'll do my best to make the plotline interesting. If I fail, I can always resort to the sunset-scene :-)

**The Mad Madame**: first off, I think it is a huge compliment you paid such attention to detail in my story to be able to write such an elaborate review. Second, I am really flattered by the amount of thought you put in to this. You bring up a lot of valid points and this review has certainly been a great help in creating further chapters. Thank you so much for your input. I will try to use as much of it as possible in future chapters, although there is something I'd like to explain now.

I agree with you that Narcissa must have gotten quite a scare, seeing that she has two husbands all of a sudden. However, Lucius already explained that she is the rational type and tends to hide her emotions well. Secondly, she has been living a fairly normal life, whereas Lucius spent the last twenty years in captivity and has only recently recovered. Furthermore he has not yet had a chance to work on some of the emotional damage that he sustained and he has no idea how badly people in general think of him, before visiting the Ministry. Not really, anyway. Between the two of them, I think Narcissa is in better shape and therefore doesn't have an anxiety attack. At least not that we know of…

Again, thank you for the very helpful commentary; it will certainly be used well!

**Jo**: thank you! Glad you liked the chapter and, like everyone out there, are wondering who walks in on them. All will be revealed… hope you won't be disappointed.

**Hotskittles**: thanks for the compliment. Well, your wish has been granted: an update, hot from the press :-)

**Sarcastic22**: (smiles) I am starting to wonder how I dare to leave it at that as well, lol. If nothing else, at least it motivates me to post another chapter soon. Even though I seem evil, I really can't bear to leave you guys hanging for too long :-) I am reading your story by the way, haven't finished yet… but I will.

**Star-Angel23**: I hope you didn't really fail Physics! Although, I must say it is a tough subject. You want to know what Draco'd do if he walks in on them? Well… Thank you for reviewing!

**Babo**: eh… is that 'holy-cow-that-was-great' or 'holy-cow-how-can-anyone-write-such-rubbish'? If you won't clear it up, I'll just take it as a compliment ;-) Thank you.

**Anonymously**: ooo, chocolate frogs! I like chocolate! Hope this update can be vaguely considered as 'soon'. So another one who suspects Narcissa, are you? My, my, she doesn't manage to inspire a lot of confidence in you lot, does she? ;-) Thank you for the lovely review.

**Robyn**: glad you like the pairing, my general plotline and the chapter. Totally agree with you on Lucius: that guy is hot! (It's no coincidence he is one of the main characters) thank you for reviewing and enjoy the next instalment.

**HoVis**: Long time no see either! How have you been? I hope your angst levels haven't risen too dangerously. Maybe you should read this chapter with caution ;-) Thank you for the review. Hope you had a very nice Christmas and happy New Year to you too!

**Finraziel**: my dear friend, I was completely blown away to find a review from you in my mailbox and such a lengthy one at that! It really surprises me that you like my story and I can't help but be delighted! I am glad I managed to liven up a dreary day and I hope you will like future chapters as well. I must say I feel something of a pressure to perform, now that I know you are reading my scribbles… anyway, thank you for reviewing! Oh…and for fixing my printer ;-)

**PyroChic7**: wow, another new name! glad you like! Well, I was sorta wondering who is going to interrupt them myself ;-) let's see who dared to walk in on them, shall we? Thank you for dropping me a line!

**Ninigirl**: thank you so much for your kind compliments. I am overwhelmed by all the positive feedback I am getting here! Thank you so much and I hope you enjoy the next chapter.

Now, this chapter is even longer than chapter twelve. I thought about making it a bit shorter but decided against it. As I explained before, the story has a sort of natural flow, with all the chapters having a natural ending and I didn't want to disrupt that. Furthermore, I felt I still had a lot of explaining to do regarding why Lucius went to the Manor for instance. Besides, I thought you wouldn't really mind if it were a bit longer.

There are few Lucius/Hermione moments in this chapter, but I promise I will make it up to you, probably in chapter fourteen. Thank you again for all the wonderful, generous reviews and feel free to keep it up. Seriously, it is very helpful to hear your thoughts on the matter.

Now, on to the story! I present, chapter 13, in which Hermione and Lucius are caught in the act and we pay a little visit to Malfoy Manor.

Enjoy.

* * *

**To save a Malfoy**

Ch 13. The trouble is…

Hermione felt herself drowning in the emotions and sensations their kiss evoked in her. 'Did the man have to be stunning in everything he did?' she thought irrationally. Not that she was complaining. She didn't have too much experience with the opposite sex –with the threat of Voldemort looming over them she had chosen to occupy her time with other things– but she knew without a doubt that Lucius Malfoy must be the greatest…

Abruptly she broke off her train of thought, her eyes flying open. She was kissing a married man! Lucius Malfoy! Kissing Lucius Malfoy! Of all the stupid…

Her thought processes came to another sudden stop when his eyelids fluttered open in reaction to her withdrawing from him. His eyes were pools of liquid silver and she vaguely wondered how a cool colour like grey could look so fiery. For the briefest moment there was nothing but pure bliss in their depths, then they widened in shock as realisation dawned.

Guilt surged up in Hermione like fists gripping her insides. How could she have kissed him? She was his medi-witch; it was unethical, it was immoral, it was _wrong_! If there was anyone who knew the extent of his vulnerability it would have to be her. And she didn't give it a single thought.

In a flash, his eyes showed his horror, before he carefully molded his face into the blank expression she had come to see more and more often the last couple of weeks. They were still standing only inches apart, but emotionally he had withdrawn from her as much as if they were both on opposite sides of the Great Hall.

Wordless apologies rose to her lips, never passing them. There was nothing she could say, no excuse for what had happened. Unable to look at him, this man whose fate she cared so deeply about, she took a couple of hasty, backwards steps, completing their separation by physical distance as well as emotional.

"Lucius…" came a voice from the door. Hermione's head snapped up in the direction of the voice and her shame was complete. She felt the treacherous heat rising in her cheeks and there was only one thought left in her mind: she had to get out of here.

"Excuse me," she mumbled. Head bent, eyes fixed firmly on the floor, she literally fled the room, in the process almost running over the person who had just entered.

The two remaining occupants of the room were left staring at each other in tense silence. One of them spoke.

"Don't condemn…" Lucius. Soft, pleading. He was interrupted.

"Not here, not now." Clipped. Harsh.

Another tense silence as they locked stares.

"Father, did Hermione confirm her diagnosis, are you all right?"

With difficulty, Lucius redirected his gaze at his son, who had now appeared in the room as well. He managed to fold his face into a reassuring smile.

"I am fine, Draco."

His son was studying him intently.

"Are you sure?" he said, "when we were on our way here Hermione passed us in the hallway and she looked rather…distressed."

Was it his imagination, or was Draco watching his reaction very closely when he said 'Hermione'?

"Yes, I'd like to know what is going on with Miss Granger, too," his wife's cool voice added.

Lucius felt trapped. His son was a Slytherin, as was his wife and under their intense scrutiny, especially after the long, long day he'd been having, he felt as exposed as he had in the Atrium of the Ministry that morning.

'_So many people,' he though anxiously as he stepped from the fireplace in the Ministry, together with his son. His re-acquaintance with the pleasures of floo-travel after twenty years confirmed for him, that he still felt dizzy afterwards and preferred other ways of transportation. _

_Unfortunately, it was not possible to apparate into the Atrium of the Ministry of Magic. On second thought, seeing that he hadn't apparated in twenty years either, it would probably be wise to practise a little first, before attempting it in a public place. No matter how much they said it was like flying a broomstick; that once you've learned it, you never forgot, he'd rather not splinch himself in front of an audience. _

_As he felt, more than saw the presence of Severus Snape and Albus Dumbledore emerging from the fireplace behind him, he was jerked from his ruminations on magical modes of transportation back to the present. Ever since his rescue from the dungeon by misters Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley, he had only been exposed to small numbers of people. Looking at the large numbers of witches and wizards in the Ministry's reception area, he felt a flutter of panic well up in his stomach, which he suppressed harshly. With a start he realised that the Atrium, which had been bustling with activity mere moments ago, had gone eerily silent. Every single person in the room was staring at them. Or rather, at him._

_Not wasting any time, thank Merlin, their group started to make their way to the watch-wizard standing next to the gates separating them from the elevators. With the comparative ease of someone who had a lifetime's worth of experience in hiding his feelings, he maintained the carefully blank expression of his face and walked with his head held up proudly and his back straight. He had found out, by means of a lot of pain and suffering, that it was unwise to show your emotions._

_Of course, that didn't mean he didn't see the looks people were giving him; the loathing, the disgust, the hatred, all directed at him. Having been used to physical abuse for what seemed like forever, it surprised him how much the resentment radiating off of this group of strangers hit a nerve deep inside. He couldn't explain why it would matter what these witches and wizards thought of him; they were nothing to him, after all. And yet, he couldn't help but wonder if it would ever end. He was so tired of having to hide his emotions, of having to fight every step of the way. He was tired of people hating him…_

_As Dumbledore talked to the watch-wizard, he kept staring straight ahead, praying that they would be beyond the reach of the nasty glares and hateful looks that were being thrown his way soon._

_And then there was no more silence. A puffy-faced wizard whispered something to his companion; Lucius saw the movement from the corner of his eye. He braced himself._

"_Hey Malfoy, not so tough without your silver mask on, are you?" _

_Lucius forcefully resisted the urge to close his eyes. A small bubble of gratitude formed inside of him when he saw his son glare at the audacious speaker. At least he wasn't facing this alone. His relief was short-lived however, when a voice from the other side of the room yelled: "And don't even think about testifying you were under Imperio!"_

'_Imperio? Severus hadn't mentioned anything about that,' he thought. Making a mental note to ask him about it later, he tried to suppress the urge to piece together what the statement implied._

_He needn't have worried though, for as the crowd around him erupted into taunts and jeers, it was all he could do to keep his emotions under control. He tried not to listen to what they were saying, but it was hard. Even with all of them shouting and cursing simultaneously, it was impossible for him not to hear certain remarks. Listening to people cursing his name, wishing him to get the kiss, telling him he should receive the same torture he had inflicted on others, he felt like a huge, oppressive weight was being placed on his shoulders, weighing him down more with every remark._

'_Hurry up!' he thought, impatiently, willing the watch-wizard to finish his job. When he heard Dumbledore's remark to the young Ministry employee, he felt an absurd amount of gratitude for the old wizard._

_Finally, the last person to have her wand registered, Miss Granger, got her rightful property back. He noticed she didn't place it back up her sleeve and neither had the Potter boy, Arthur Weasley's son or Draco. A feeling of dread washed over him, as he realised that those he still thought of as children sensed the possible danger of an angry mob on a rampage._

"_You killed my children, Malfoy! And for that, I will see you get the Dementor's Kiss!" A chill, that originated from deep inside his body travelled up his spine and spread out like a disease, enveloping his entire being. The heartbreaking agony and searing hatred combined in the woman's eyes was nearly his undoing. He had to call on all of his strength, to keep himself from collapsing to the floor right then and there. He wanted to shout that it hadn't been him, that he would never do such a thing…he wanted to tell them he had been as much a victim of Voldemort's as any of them had been._

_But it was no use. They wouldn't believe him if he tried. Hell, they'd probably lynch him the old-fashioned way. So all he could do was pretend he hadn't heard or didn't care. All he could be was a coward, hiding behind the skirts of the Order of the Phoenix. And his own son, gods damn it!_

_To him, it seemed as if the couple of feet that separated them from the relative safety of the elevators stretched for miles in front of him. The sounds of the crowd weaved around him, deformed, and for a moment he was afraid he might fall into a dead faint. A warm hand at the small of his back brought the world back into focus. When the elevator doors finally closed, cutting him off from the angry comments, he could have cried in sheer relief._

_Without looking, he knew the eyes of the young Gryffindor woman that had saved his life, were fixed on him in concern._

'_Please don't ask me if I'm all right, please don't ask me…' he prayed silently. He knew he couldn't take that right now. Not with what was still lying ahead…_

_She seemed to understand, for she remained silent._

Before his overtaxed and fatigued mind could come up with a plausible excuse for Hermione's behaviour, rescue came from an unexpected source.

"She received an urgent message; family business, I believe," came the silky tones of the Potions Masters' voice.

Both Narcissa and Draco turned towards the source of the words, their attention drawn away from Lucius briefly. The older Malfoy threw his old friend a grateful look, but unless his Slytherin abilities were totally giving out on him, there was a hardness in Severus' eyes that hadn't been there before. Regardless, in this moment there were more urgent matters to attend to; he could worry about the disgruntled professor later.

"Yes," he heard himself agreeing to Severus' statement, "I hope it wasn't bad news." To his satisfaction, his voice was even and strong and not a hint of the chaos going on behind the scenes was audible in it.

At least a little part of him was still Slytherin.

* * *

Hermione didn't know where she was going; the only thing on her mind was that she wanted to get as much distance between herself and Lucius as was humanly possible. 

She hardly paid any attention to her surroundings and was oblivious to people that passed her. The occupants of the portraits lining the walls were looking upon the young woman with concern. The girl was obviously distressed, but what had put her in this kind of mood?

Without conscious thought, Hermione started to ascend the staircases leading to the higher levels of the castle and soon she found herself in a familiar hallway. As she realised where she had gotten to, she would have smiled if she hadn't been so thoroughly miserable.

She didn't know what she needed right now, except for a place where she could hide from the world for a while. Here there was someone who would be able to help her with that. Or rather, something, she mused as she passed the blank stretch of wall facing the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy for the third time. As always, the door appeared. She flung it open and went inside. Closing it immediately, she leaned her back against it, screwing her eyes tightly shut. As she slowly slid down to the floor, she finally allowed the tears, which had been threatening ever since she saw the look of horror on Lucius' face, to fall.

* * *

Lucius suppressed the urge to sigh deeply. After a generous offer from Albus Dumbledore to provide rooms for the night and a lot of debating, a rather reluctant Narcissa had finally decided that she would be most comfortable spending the night at home, at the Manor, while her son chose to stay at Hogwarts with his father, to accompany him to the Ministry the following day. 

To his surprise, Lucius found that he was rather glad his wife was leaving. The day had been long and taxing; no matter how much he loved his wife and wanted to reacquaint himself with her, he was bone-tired and in no shape to pay her the degree of attention that was her due.

That afternoon, when she had extended an invitation to him and Severus for dinner at the Manor, he had been overjoyed. To have a chance to be back at his ancestral home, even if for now it would only be for the duration of dinner and to be in the company of his beautiful wife without strangers looking at his every move was a stroke of good luck he had not expected so soon.

Although, he suspected it had not so much to do with luck as with Draco's persuasive qualities. He had observed his son having a lengthy and from the looks of it rather serious conversation with his mother. He was willing to bet that the whole dinner invitation had been Draco's idea.

He knew Narcissa didn't know what to think yet, or who to believe and she probably was still somewhat upset about being kept in the dark; needless to say that inviting might-be-husbands over for dinner had not been a high priority on her to-do-list. And yet, their son had managed to persuade her and Lucius was very grateful to him for having created this wonderful opportunity to see his wife in private.

_Apparating over to the Manor had taxed his abilities much more than what would normally be the case and his sense of direction was slightly off. Considering the long time he hadn't used this particular ability and he was Apparating with a borrowed wand, it was not very surprising. But, by Merlin, it was great to be able to apparate again. The elegance of apparition itself was something that had always appealed to him and it was by far his favourite means of travel. After his arrival, he had to suppress the urge to apparate to London and back, just because he could. _

_His giddiness soon evaporated as the imposing gates of Malfoy Manor swung open soundlessly to allow the visitors entrance. Suddenly, he was very nervous about being home, finally, after so many years. Glancing quickly at the composed figure of the Potions Master to his left, Lucius felt a little better; he was not alone. Severus returned his anxious look with a steady gaze of his own and pulled up an eyebrow in question. The blond wizard gave an almost imperceptible nod._

_Taking the time to walk up the long path that led to the double doors marking the main entrance to the Manor, he berated himself for feeling so nervous. This was the house he grew up in, the house where his wife and child lived; if there was one place to call home, it would be here. He looked up to the handsome two-storey building in crème-coloured stone. In the centre of the house there were the huge double doors, oak, bearing the Malfoy family Crest. To the left and the right of the entrance symmetrical wings stretched to the sides, each with dozens of large windows, reflecting the late afternoon sun. The roof was covered with dark green tiles and he knew that underneath them there were hundreds of good hiding places for small boys. When he was a child himself, he had tried them all. In the attics of the Manor there had been many items not specifically suited for him to play with, though. Of course, Lucius and his friends had been utterly fascinated by them. With a pang of remorse he thought of how he had planned to lock all of those away before Draco was old enough to get up there. At least until the boy was old enough to not accidentally kill himself. Knowing that he hadn't been able to carry out that particular resolve, he wondered how old his son had been when he first came into contact with the Dark Arts…_

_Forcing his mind away from such dismal ruminations he looked at the complete picture the Manor offered: the clean lines, with elegant carvings over the windows and the double doors combined with the creamy colour of the stones and the contrast with the dark tiles was as impressive as he remembered._

_He still recalled the awe of visitors in general when they caught their first glimpse of the Manor and how it used to fill him with pride. It was all so familiar. _

_And yet it was also strange to him. The lawns surrounding the huge Manor were well kept, but there seemed to be minor differences between his memories and what he was actually seeing. In his mind, the house and its surrounding grounds looked lighter, less gloomy than what was lying before him now. _

_He realised with a start it was not the Manor, but he himself that had changed; it no longer _felt_ as his home. Another man had lived here for over twenty years, in his house, with his family…and it seemed like the memory of him was polluting Lucius' feeling of belonging with his remembered presence. _

_All too soon for his tastes, they were only a couple dozen feet away from the doors, the lawn on either side of the lane interrupted by rose-bushes planted in neat rows._

_Lucius had always loved tending to the roses, something he had inherited from his grandfather on his mother's side. Grandfather Lloyd had taken up growing roses after his wife died and young Lucius spent long afternoons looking at his grandfather and listening to him talking about the beautiful flowers. From the day his grandfather had first taken two-year-old Lucius to his greenhouse, happily skipping on his grandfather's hand, the little boy had admired the elegance of the bloom. _

_Lucius could still remember vividly when one day his grandfather had sent him an urgent floo-message to come immediately. Concerned, Lucius had flooed to his grandfather's house, thinking the old wizard had fallen ill or something of the kind. But Grandfather Lloyd had been awaiting him near the fireplace and his eyes seemed to contain anxious anticipation, rather than a lurking illness. _

_He had taken Lucius to his beloved greenhouse. On the workbench, was a small rosebush with only a single rose. It was almost completely white, with nearly translucent petals. At the heart, there was a hint of pink that suffused softly to the edges of the petals. It was without a doubt the most beautiful thing sixteen-year-old Lucius had ever seen. Turning to his grandfather, delight and admiration warred for prevalence on his features._

"_I bred it myself. Named it after you," his grandfather had said gruffly, in his usual manner. If ever he had doubted his grandfather's affection for him, all doubt must die at such a gesture. Lucius hadn't been able to do anything but smile his brightest smile._

_From that day, he still loved all roses, but there was none he liked so well as the Rosa Lucii._

_Looking at the rosebushes now, he saw that they were planted in straight lines, in a pattern that testified of little imagination. He had always preferred rounded patterns himself. _

_He also saw that the colour had evolved from the translucent pale pink and white into a dusky pink. Unable to stop himself, he strayed from the lane to inspect them more closely. The roses had been tended to, but it looked almost haphazardly done by someone who had a vague idea of what he was doing, but obviously without loving the roses like he had done. _

_Straightening up from his hunched position next to one of the bushes, he felt sad. The roses were yet another reminder of how long he had been gone._

_The house-elf that opened the door for Hogwarts' Potions Master and the former master of the house squeaked in astonishment, the enormous eyes bulging even more than was usually the case, on seeing who the visitors were._

"_You is returned, Master!" It said in a quivering voice, bowing as low as possible and cowering behind the impressive door. As both Severus and Lucius stepped inside, the elf held the uncomfortable position, its face mere inches from the floor. It didn't look up once, while it scurried to the side, well out of its Master's way. Lucius frowned at the overly servile behaviour of the elf. _

_Before he could question his friend on it, though, Draco came down the stairs that led to the upper levels of the Manor and consequently, the wings that held the families' chambers. As always on seeing the impressive young wizard that was his son, Lucius felt his chest swell with fatherly pride. The expectant look in Draco's eyes reminded the older Malfoy that he was back home for the first time in two decades. Taking a deep breath, he let his eyes wander around the entrance hall. _

_It was a large, oval shaped room, with a beautiful staircase at the back, that split at the level of Lucius' eyes. Both branches curved their way along the wall, one to the left and one to the right, leading to the respective wings of the Manor. The banister was from a warm-coloured cherry-wood, carved into elegant flowing lines, the stairs themselves carpeted with rich, deep grey carpeting. The walls were cream-coloured and the lower half was panelled in wood, slightly darker than the walls. The marble floor in black and grey tints was mostly uncovered. A huge crystal chandelier illuminated with hundreds of candles hovered over the staircase._

_Seeing that the room was mainly intended to impress visitors there was little furniture in the entrance hall. There was an antique chair in the curve of the stairs, a breathtakingly beautiful tapestry on one wall and a priceless oriental Dewi-statue. A couple of portraits of particularly important ancestors hung between the many doors leading from the hall._

_He had expected to be elated to be back at the Manor. He had dreamt about it for countless hours, during agonizing punishments and in the aftermaths of _his_ visits. The image was what had kept him from falling apart. That and thoughts of his beautiful baby-boy and wife. _

_And now that the moment had finally arrived, it was strangely anti-climactic. The overwhelming joy he'd expected was not felt and he could only conclude that it was because of the impostor's presence still lingering in his home, like a boggart in the cupboard waiting to give an unsuspecting victim a nasty surprise. It was as if it suffused the rich furnishings, the drapes and the portraits, the lavish woodwork and the marble ornaments of the Manor. _

_Like the grounds, the Manor itself didn't differ much from his memory of it, but the small changes were enough to give him an unsettled feeling that he did not belong. Consequently, being back home was as much a reminder of the fact that he had been gone for so long, as the happy event he had imagined it to be. Only the almost childish joy in Draco's eyes when he saw his father at the Manor again, urged him to keep his thoughts to himself. He carefully schooled his face into a pleased smile and allowed himself to be led to the dining-room. _

_The dining room had changed rather a lot since he had last seen it. Narcissa had apparently been able to convince his counterpart that light-blue really was a good colour for the walls; he himself had always rather liked the warm, soft beige it was before and had always opposed the blue colour-scheme. Seeing the finished result, he felt he had been right. _

_Apparently the house elves had been ordered to go all-out, for the table was set with the finest china and he didn't remember ever seeing those crystal goblets before. And of course the food was the best money could buy. _

_Narcissa was the perfect hostess; dressed immaculately in her lilac robes, her hair elegantly pulled up, she kept an interesting conversation going. She was intelligent and witty and her manners were impeccable. It was easy to remember why he had fallen in love with her all those years ago. Lucius found that he didn't feel like talking himself and he simply watched his wife and son make polite conversation with the saturnine Potions Professor. _

_Focussing his attention to his son, he noticed Draco's behaviour was a bit more formal in the company of his mother. Lucius caught him and Severus exchanging glances every now and then, in a fashion that suggested the two knew each other's thoughts well. _

_It amused him to see that the young blond wizard surreptitiously pushed the cauliflower to the edge of his plate and left it there. Always having detested the vegetable himself, it was reassuring to see that he had some things in common with the young man he still knew so preciously little of._

_Narcissa was a different story altogether. In true Slytherin fashion, her appearance showed nothing of her opinions or thoughts. It was impossible to tell if she were enraptured for having company or annoyed that Draco had badgered her into inviting the two men for dinner. Hazarding a guess, based on his knowledge of the old Cissa, she was still piqued about being left out and would most certainly bring it up in conversation at the earliest possible convenience when no strangers were present._

_He had no idea what she thought of him, though. At the moment there was little evidence to support the theory that he was the real Lucius Malfoy and the Geminis Fortunae had not even been brought up yet at the Ministry hearing. He was acutely aware of the fact that he was at his ancestral home only by the grace of his son vouching for him. Much as he would like to think Severus Snape was there as a concession to him, he knew the Potions Master had been invited as much for Cissa's peace of mind as for his own… _

_It was only to be expected of course. Actually it was rather clever and it should be gratifying his wife would not be easily fooled. But he couldn't help the fact that a larger part of him was illogically hurt by her prudent precaution and Severus' company added to the feeling that he did not belong here anymore._

_He allowed his gloomy thoughts to drift to the meeting at the Ministry. It had taken the better part of the day to explain what had been discovered so far, with the exception of their suspicion of the use of the Geminis Fortunae. _

_Instantly, he had felt a dislike towards their current minister of Magic and he couldn't help but feel that the feeling was mutual. Either that or the man loathed his counterpart too much to be able to see them as two separate individuals yet. He almost sighed at that. There were a whole lot of witches and wizards out there that would have the same problem. Their entrance at the Atrium had proven that much at least. _

_He hadn't given it much thought before, since he had been surrounded by people who were somehow willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. He quickly glanced over at Severus Snape and was once again thankful to the fates for having ended up in the care of his students and being taken to Hogwarts._

_After having been confronted with the caution of his own wife, however, he could no longer ignore the fact, that the world at large only knew Lucius Malfoy by the horrific actions of his counterpart. People like Fudge and the crowd at the Ministry unfortunately represented the opinion of the wizarding world at large. It was going to take a lot of work to convince them of the truth, if such a feat could ever be accomplished. At this rather depressing thought, he felt a surge of panic rise up in his chest and he had to suppress the urge to excuse himself to think things over in private. Although he loathed admitting it, even to himself, he dreaded the next meeting at the Ministry, seeing how much today's meeting had strained his already meagre reserves._

_Occupied by his thoughts, Lucius spoke very little. As he watched Draco and Narcissa talk to Severus, it ached to see them so relatively comfortable with each other. Even though he and Draco had been spending hours upon hours in each other's company the last several weeks, he was strongly reminded of the fact that he had missed a huge part of their lives. _

_Severus Snape was less of a stranger to his wife and son than he himself was._

_In an uncharacteristic transparency of emotions, Lucius managed to catch his wife throwing an uneasy glance his way. His stomach contracted forcefully at yet another reminder that he did not belong, that he was a stranger in the only place he had ever called home. Narcissa schooled her features the second she caught his eye, but the brief moment in which her emotions had been clearly visible on her features, hurt more than all of the insults from that morning combined. _

_Suddenly he found himself longing for the company of Hermione Granger. She was a good conversationalist when he wanted to talk, but was also perfectly content to be silent if he did not. He had found that he admired her intelligence and genuinely liked her for the ease with which she dealt with people. In her company, he could do as he wished and be himself. Her manners were not as perfect as Narcissa's and she had broken some rules of etiquette numerous times by offering him comfort while he had not asked for it explicitly. However, compared to the somewhat artificial conversation at the Malfoy dining table where not even his son could relax completely, it seemed rather appealing._

_Deciding then and there, that he would leave as soon as was possible without being impolite, he took a small spoonful of the delicious peach-and-mint ice-cream that was his favourite. The oh-so-familiar taste brought back bittersweet memories of picnics and late-night conversations with Cissa; all of the things that had kept him sane during his captivity and were at the same time the worst possible torture. Knowing now that another had taken his place, he wondered if she had shared this dessert with his nemesis, thinking it had been him; would she have spoilt him by bringing him a little of this ice-cream in the study when he was working late?_

_However, the knowledge that, no matter if Cissa believed his story or not, she had ordered the House Elves to make his favourite dessert created a bittersweet pain that seemed to chafe the inside of his chest. _

"_Father?" _

_It took him a couple of seconds before he could disentangle himself from his thoughts enough for him to look at his son._

"_Yes, Draco?"_

"_Do you like your ice-cream? I especially asked the House elves to make a dessert you used to like when you were my age." The silvery grey eyes, so much like his own, were looking at him expectantly._

_Lucius felt his throat constrict painfully at this unexpected twist. Automatically, he glanced at Narcissa, unaware of the fact that his disappointment was somewhat visible on his features. Caught unawares, she was not fast enough to hide the hard look in her eyes, before he saw it. Turning back to Draco he managed: "It's…delicious." The words barely made it past his tight throat._

_Seeing the cool grey of his son's eyes light up with pleasure at that inadequate praise, was Lucius' undoing. _

_In one day he had found out just how much the general public hated 'Lucius Malfoy', he was reunited with his wife and had a confrontation with his counterpart.He hadfirst been overjoyed to be invited to the Manor and then felt sad because everything seemed to remind him of the fact that he did not belong there anymore –including the uneasy glances of his one-time lover. The fact that it was his son and not Narcissa that had ordered the peach-and-mint ice-cream was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. _

_The small lump that had started to form in his stomach, when he noticed the differences to the lawns and the rosebushes and had steadily grown over dinner, suddenly burst into massive proportions. It was as if there was this strange presence in his chest, taking up space where his lungs should have been, while at the same time it seemed as if something was pressing down on him from the outside. A feeling of extreme nausea rose in the back of his throat and he felt as if he would either be violently sick or pass out. _

_He put down the spoon next to the ice-cream._

"_Please excuse me." The words were uttered with a breathy quality to it and he didn't wait for a response, before he pushed his chair away from the table and got up. He ignored the questions his sudden departure caused; by now there was only one thing on his mind: he needed to get out of the damn dining room._

_The feeling in his chest refused to go away and he couldn't help but feel that he might actually pass out. He couldn't remember ever having had this ghastly feeling before; extremely nauseous and as if he couldn't get enough air, no matter how hard he tried. Leaning against the wall outside the dining room for support, he started to make his way back towards the entrance hall, and outside. He needed some fresh air. _

_It couldn't have been more than four steps, before he sensed the presence of Severus Snape at his side._

"_What is wrong Lucius?"_

_Another wave of nausea washed over Lucius as he tried to focus on his friend's face. His vision seemed to be diminishing as well, since he could only see what was right in the middle of his field of vision. _

"_I…don't…know…" he gasped, automatically reaching out to the Potions Master for support. _

_He felt a wiry arm sliding around his waist and his own arm being draped over rather bony shoulders. Ambivalently, he felt both grateful for the support and embarrassed to need it._

"_Fresh air…" he gasped frantically, "…can't… breathe..."_

_He wanted to get out of there, before either Narcissa or Draco came to look for him. It was bad enough having to rely on Snape, but he didn't want his wife or son to see him like this. Even through the overwhelming feeling of nausea that kept washing over him in waves, he wanted to curl up and hide somewhere to ride out this hideous attack in solitude. He didn't want anyone to see his weakness, especially if he was actually going to faint or be sick._

_The Gods were not very kind to him today, because next thing he knew, Narcissa and Draco were both there as well. His shame was complete. _

_Somehow, between frantically praying to be away from anybody's scrutiny and begging the awful sensations inside his chest to go away, the words 'medi-wizard', 'Harris' and 'house-visit' had found their way through his fogged up brain. Piecing together that they were about to call an unknown medi-wizard to check up on him, he found the idea appalled him and created a whole new onslaught of the panicky feeling he was experiencing._

"_Severus..." he clamped down painfully on the shoulder underneath his hand, "Hogwarts…" he gasped, "Granger…take me…" _

"_Harris can be here in a minute, I'll call him by floo," Narcissa interjected, through the buzzing in Lucius' ears._

_He shook his head. It was bad enough that by now his friend, his son _and_ his wife had seen him like this; he did not want an unknown medi-wizard to add to the mix._

"_No..." he breathed, "Granger…take me… to Granger…"_

"_But…" started Narcissa Malfoy, not used to being contradicted._

"_Narcissa, with all due respect, we don't have time for this! If he wants to go to Hogwarts, I'll take him to Hogwarts" Snape interrupted her in a tone of voice that brooked no argument, "where is the nearest floo-exit?" _

"_This way." Draco's voice. Cool, collected, but with a hint of concern in it. _

_Grateful beyond belief that they were going to Hogwarts, Lucius felt a little part of the nausea being replaced with relief. It died an early death though and the nausea came back with a vengeance. The buzzing in his ears doubled and black spots appeared in front of his eyes. Feeling the panic rising in his throat, slowly squeezing it shut, he gasped for breath and held on painfully tight to his friend's shoulder. As his knees buckled from under him, he felt Severus grabbing on to him more tightly, the arm around his waist moving upward to grab him under his armpits, a second one sliding under his knees. To Lucius' embarrassment, he was picked up like a small child, his body resting against a thin, but warm chest. _

_He tried to force the blurriness of his vision to recede and allow him to focus on his friend's face. For a brief moment he succeeded and he could make out the stern features and the dark eyes peering at his face in concern._

"_We'll be at Hogwarts soon," the soothing tones of the rich voice reached his mind and he felt the panic inside him die down the tiniest bit at the thought of the familiar and safe surroundings of the castle and the young woman that had cared for him so well. _

_He couldn't remember much of anything while he was waiting for the Gryffindor to appear. The nausea wouldn't die down, in spite of the fact that he was gently placed on 'his' hospital bed in the room he had occupied not very long ago. _

_He didn't know how much time had passed, but the first thing that he was aware of was when he felt warm hands on his forehead and temples. With some difficulty he opened his eyes to the comforting presence that had helped him through all his nightmares for the past weeks. He felt relief flood through him at the sight of the familiar face with the friendly amber eyes and even though he still felt awful, he couldn't help but smile feebly at her. _

Lucius' thoughts were interrupted by his son declaring he was off to bed and wishing him goodnight.

He looked up to see that Narcissa had taken her leave and he was left in the room with Draco and Severus.

As soon as the door closed behind the tall blond youth, the black-clad figure turned to face him.

"Now… would you care to explain what the hell happened between you and Hermione Granger?"

**AN**: I particularly like the image of Snape carrying Lucius in his arms. Something like six years ago I saw a picture in the newspaper of a soldier carrying a wounded comrade. The wounded man cried out in pain at the moment the picture was taken. I thought it was an incredibly powerful image and for one, it reminded me of why I have always wanted to become a doctor.


	14. Repercussions

**Disclaimer**: I never said I was JK Rowling, so don't sue me for it!

**AN**. Hello everybody! Well, what can I say, besides that it has been much too long!! I feel like this update is shamefully overdue and I just had to finish and post the next chapter today, I couldn't keep you waiting any longer. My only excuse is that uni-live is kicking in with a vengeance...I have another test coming up in three weeks time, so I am slowly starting to feel the pressure.

First of all, let me thank all of you again for the glorious, wonderful, flattering reviews you left me in such overwhelming numbers. I am simply awed that you keep liking the story so much. But it is definitely nice.

Now, before I forget it completely: happy new year to all of you! I hope you'll all have a splendid new year with lots of happiness and good fanfic, lol.

Let's get on with the personal thank-you's so we can get on with the story all the sooner ;-)

**Artemis Moonclaw**: powerful you say? Thank you very much. I wanted to give you an impression of the kind of man the real Lucius is and reading your review, I get the feeling I succeeded. Thank you.

**CharmedLeoLvr**: you can thank Shyngr8 for Lucius' POV: it was her idea! ;-) I am glad you liked the chapter. We will find out more about Narcissa and of course how Lucius and Hermione's relationship develops now that they have kissed. Thanks for reviewing.

**Melody**: I like calling you Jaid Ziaen as well: it sounds pretty. Anyway…lovely review. Thanks for the remark about the light-blue walls: it was sort of an inside joke, because one of my friends (who reads this story) is about to move to a new apartment and he wants to paint his walls light-blue and I am trying to convince him that it is too cold a colour. I made sure to point your review out to him, haha. Glad you liked the Snape-carrying-Lucius-image, I rather like that myself. Not only because of the soldiers' picture, but also because of the picture the two of them would make…just imagine, pure white, angelic looking Lucius and dark, brooding Snape…yum. But I digress ;-) thank you.

**Wackoramaco87**: Glad you liked the ice-cream-touch: I have gotten a lot of positive feedback on that. Sorry about the long wait. I doubt updating now classifies anywhere near 'soon'. Can I make it up to you by a bit of mystery and HG/LM moments in this chapter? ;-) thanks for reviewing!

**The Mad Madame**: I think it is awesome to see the amount of time and effort you put into your reviews. They are a tremendous help and nice to read at that. Sometimes I get the feeling you understand my story better than I do ;-) thank you for all your trouble. Btw: I think the three-bears-syndrome joke was pretty funny.

**Tracy3**: ah, I owe you an apology as well, since I have not updated as soon as I would have liked to! I'll add your name to the list of 'people suspicious of Narcissa's involvement'. Thank you for reviewing!

**Hermione21**: do I need to say I am sorry again? ;-) sorry! Thanks for the compliments on my male, Slytherin characters and Hermione. I really do try to do them all justice, but sometimes it is hard coming up with the right things to say. I really appreciate you telling me that you like them, thanks!

**Jo**: you are most welcome! You must understand that for me it is so very nice to read all of the reviews you people send to me. Even if it is only a little comment, they truly make my day. Therefore I gladly take the time to write all of you a personal thank you: it is well-deserved.

**Storygirl2009**: I will certainly keep going! All you sweet people are all I need to not give up on the story! Thank you so much.

**Mary**: yes, Severus definitely is in on it now, haha. I must say I am almost as curious as you to see what he is going to do about it. I hope you'll like what I have done. Thanks for reviewing.

**Racer717**: the confrontation between Lucius and Snape you mean? Well, what can I say… I am a mean person sometimes ;-) Thank you for once again telling me that this is an original concept: I don't think I can hear that compliment often enough! Thanks.

**None**: I totally agree with you! The HG/LM moments are the best parts. To keep it a moderately good story though, I have to add some other characters and explain some things here and there to keep the story going. There will be HG/LM in this chapter, though. Thanks for reviewing.

**Shadowwarriorsangel**: wow. You honour me by leaving me such a lengthy and detailed review. I think I understand what you mean and I will certainly explain how Hermione and Lucius feel about each other. As I said, this chapter contains some HG/LM moments. They really are the best. I hope your computer is all right now and thanks for reviewing!

**Hotskittles**: thank you! I also agree with your remark about 'Grey'… even though she updated not so long ago, I hope she does it again soon!

**Epona Rosa**: as always, I am very surprised this story can move people to tears. It means a lot to me, since the last chapter is close to my own heart as well. I am granting you your wish about the next HG/LM encounter ;-) Thank you.

**Sarcastic22**: your reviews are so incredibly nice to read: they really make me smile; I love your enthusiasm. I hope you liked my review on your story as well, I really thought it had potential, I hope that shows. About the rose…I researched that all species of rose are named 'Rosa (something)' and I added Lucii, because that would mean as much as 'from Lucius'. The complete name 'Rosa Lucii' would then translate as 'Lucius' rose.' I completely made it up. So your name is Luci or Lucy? Thank you for reviewing.

**Shyngr8**: well, it was your idea to put in Lucius POV, so I should be thanking you ;-) About the hugging Lucius part: that is exactly what I wanted to achieve… the poor guy didn't do anything wrong and you should all feel very sorry for him! I am working on the exit and the happily-ever-after. Thank you.

**Sexy-jess**: hm, maybe I have to change the previous chapter a little… it was Snape who walked in on them, not Draco. He and Narcissa passed Hermione in the hallway after she stormed out of the room; that is all they know of it. Thank you so much for all the nice compliments. Good pick-up on the Lucius-asking-for-Hermione-when-he's-in-trouble-thing :-)

**Jaggeredprincess**: yours must be one of the most glowing reviews I have gotten, ever. I am totally overwhelmed you like the story so much and more than a little afraid of disappointing your hopes. I will try to live up to the standard I seem to have created thus far. You're welcome on the making-Lucius-less-evil-thing: the guy is just too damn cute to hate ;-) thank you for this truly magnificent review.

**Heavenn Hell**: your questions will all be answered in due time. But as you may have noticed, I am kinda dragging it out…just a tad…really ;-) Thank you for taking the trouble to drop me a line.

**Blahblahblah**: I must admit that I feel a little sorry for you, with your sister nagging you and all…but you have to remember to thankher for me ;-) I am impressed that I managed to hook a decidedly non-HG/LM ;-) At the moment, I only post here, although pureblood really is a good idea…especially if I ever get to writing those more…steamy scenes. Thank you for the wonderful review and I hope you like the next update as well.

**Violet Bunny**: I am so sorry, but I am running out of ways to thank people! Again, I can't believe how well you like this story! Thank you so much and sorry about the long wait…it's a long chapter again, though! ;-)

**J Wish**: no, this story is definitely a HG/LM. Maybe that their first kiss seems a lapse in judgement to them at first, but there will be more kisses! (definitely love kisses ;-) And yes, I am actually becoming a doctor. I wasn't able to study for three years due to personal problems, but I started again about a year ago and I am really happy with it. I have wanted to become a doctor since I was about five ;-) It also explains why my main characters (the males that is) have the tendency to get hurt or sick, so that the heroine can nurse them back to health…it appeals to my natural instincts ;-)

**Aurelione**: Okay, I see your point. Thanks for the explanation. Oh and yes, Hermione initiated the kiss. Don't feel bad about not reviewing for a week: it is nice to keep getting reviews a week after I post the chapter. I hope your dog is better! Thanks for reviewing.

**Laurie**: again, a wonderful compliment to be getting. I love the fact that you think everybody is still in character. Thank you so much.

**Star-Angel23**: thank you for all the kind wishes in your review. I think it is so nice how everybody is so supportive and nice to each other here, even though we are all virtual strangers. It makes the world a better place, even if it is only a little bit. A solid B is still pretty good in my book, btw.

**Corri**: I was so surprised to see your review! I reviewed your story but I kinda guessed you would probably never read it, since you hadn't updated in such a while. I think your story is wonderfully written and am flattered you like mine. Thanks for the compliment on the Rune-translation conversation: I think funny scenes are among the most difficult to write; I'm pleased to hear I have made you laugh.

**Dedanaan**: yep, things are definitely tangled and awkward. I really do love putting them on the spot, don't I? ;-) I think Draco and especially Narcissa catching them would have been over the top. I am trying to keep the story from become too much of a soap-opera ;-) thanks for reviewing.

**Poemzie the Phoenix**: a godmother to my story? Well, I suppose you could say that, since you are the one who convinced me it was good enough to post on FFN. And am I ever thankful you did that! If you hadn't I would be missing out on all these wonderful reviews :-) Thank you.

Again, this was not an easy chapter to write (it's the fifth attempt ;-) A lot of important things happen and I wanted to make sure it all turned out right. I am revealing a little more of what is going on with the impostor-Lucius and of course, as I promised, there's more HG/LM in this chapter.

I hope you all enjoy.

Now, may I present: chapter fourteen, in which Professor Snape reveals an unexpected side to translating Runes and Fudge makes a pain of himself.

* * *

To save a Malfoy

Ch. 14 Repercussions

Making her way down to breakfast the next morning, Hermione concluded she was not particularly looking forward to seeing either Snape or Lucius again. The memory of the complete incredulity on the face of the former or the look of horror in the eyes of the latter, were enough to bring a furious blush to her cheeks.

But it was not to be helped. She had been too involved in trying to find out what had happened to Lucius to be able to bail out now. Whether she wanted to or not, she was going to have to go to the Ministry today, to explain their suspicions concerning the use of the Geminis Fortunae. Her own sense of honour would settle for nothing less.

She didn't know how much time she had spent in the Room of Requirement last night, but when she had made her way back to her quarters, the moon was high in the sky and she hadn't encountered a single soul. Not even Filch or Mrs. Norris.

Seeing that it was already late and she wasn't going to be in bed on time anyway, she had indulged into taking a nice hot bath, in an attempt to relax somewhat. Her mind was still reeling with unsorted thoughts and feelings, caused by one, simple kiss. Not to mention the fact that her muscles were stiff and aching, from spending a couple of hours in an uncomfortable position on the cold stone floor, with her back against the unyielding, wooden door.

Unfortunately, after she had crawled into bed, when it could not have been much earlier than two a.m., sleep had eluded her; she had only managed to annoy Crookshanks with her tossing and turning to the extent that he had jumped off of the bed, apparently insulted by her lack of consideration.

Somewhere around five thirty in the morning she had given up her struggle and got up. Since her run with Harry the evening before had consisted of talking more than running, she had pulled a fresh tracksuit out of her wardrobe and five minutes later she'd been on her way outside.

After an exhausting lap around the castle grounds (she didn't think it would be wise to take the path around the lake so early in the morning and all by herself at that), she had returned to her rooms, taken a shower and dressed for the day.

And now she was making her way downstairs, towards the Great Hall, where all would be assembled for breakfast. It was still fairly early, only ten minutes past seven and she was rather hoping that she would be able to postpone the inevitable moment when she had to face Lucius again.

In the solitude of the Room of Requirement the night before, she had cried in a way she hadn't cried in a long time. She cried because she felt she had betrayed Lucius' trust. He was her patient and she was supposed to take care of him. Instead, she had given in to an impulse she should never have indulged and what was worse, she hadn't stopped when her genuine desire to comfort him had turned into a selfish desire to be held and feel needed. What had started out as an altruistic move, had escalated into a self-centred urge she didn't realise she possessed. She had cried over that too.

Even after all the long hours of contemplation, the jury wasn't decided on what had happened exactly that had led her to kiss him like that. But whatever it was, she had vowed that it would never happen again. He was a married man and that alone should be more than enough to refrain from kissing him.

Of course, having decided on her intentions, she had also had to think about how to behave the next time they met. Eventually she had decided on being 'professional'. Her experience as a medi-witch would surely be helpful with that. She would be polite and distanced, so as to make clear to him, that she realised the mistake she had made. And at the earliest possible convenience, she would apologize to him.

Yes, that is how it would have to be. Never mind the fact that it felt slightly wrong, to be apologizing for something that had felt perfectly wonderful.

As soon as she entered the Great hall, she had to suppress the urge to turn around and go right back to bed. There was no-one there yet. No-one at all. Except for Severus Snape.

On any other day it might have been funny to catch the most dreaded teacher of the school in a pose that reminded her strongly of herself. Absentmindedly taking a sip of a large mug that undoubtedly contained black coffee, he had completely immersed himself in a book, propped up against a jug of pumpkin juice.

Now however, the quiet figure of the Potions Master was enough to elicit a furious blush from her, as she couldn't keep herself from wondering what he might think of her, after what he witnessed the night before.

While lecturing herself on Gryffindor bravery in her head, Hermione took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders. She quietly made her way across the Hall and slipped into a seat a couple of chairs to his right.

"Good morning, Professor," she greeted him timidly.

When his liquid obsidian gaze shifted to her own, caramel-coloured eyes, she almost wished she had given into her impulse and turned back. Under his intense look, she could suddenly vividly remember what her very first Potions lesson had been like. Well, except for the fact that she had currently no desire whatsoever to attract his attention by waving her hand frantically in the air. He was taking more notice of her than she was comfortable with as it was.

To her annoyance, she felt another furious blush rising to her cheeks, her face glowing with embarrassment. Out of all the possible candidates of catching her kissing the blond aristocrat, he was the lesser of three evils to be sure, but that didn't necessarily entail that she would not rather have _not_ been caught at all. In spite of her mixed feelings on the matter, her rational side had clearly decided that kissing Lucius had been a grave mistake and, even though a small part of her insisted that it would not have felt so right if it were truly a mistake, she resented the fact that in a matter of such delicate and private nature, she had been caught by Snape, of all people. And moments before she had broken off their kiss of her own volition, no less! If only he had arrived half a minute later, he would not have witnessed anything at all.

It was no use crying over spilt potions, though and there was nothing for her to do then await his judgement and hope his reasonably favourable opinion of her was not damaged beyond repair.

In that eternity, that could in reality have lasted no more than half a minute, while his inscrutable gaze seemed to look right through her, Hermione Granger developed a sudden understanding for Neville Longbottom. She thought irrationally that the Sorting Hat had been right to put the seemingly cowardly boy into Gryffindor; to go to Potions lessons for five long years, knowing chances were pretty good for him to be on the receiving end of that look, one must be truly brave.

When her former Potions Professor finally opened his mouth to speak, Hermione's apprehension had grown to such a degree that she might as well have just blown up a cauldron in his classroom.

"Miss Granger," he gave her a curt nod and turned back to his book, taking another sip of his coffee.

Her eyes widened in surprise at this temperate reaction from someone with a disposition as volatile as the Potions Master. Was he not angry with her? She narrowed her eyes at him in suspicion, studying him intently. No, that could not be. Could it?

She wasn't aware that she was staring at him, until Snape remarked in a rather icy tone of voice: "Miss Granger, either say whatever it is you want to say or kindly stop staring." His eyes never left the book in front of him.

Hermione hastily turned to face her plate, then changed her mind and drew breath. As soon as the fathomless black eyes of the Potions Master were trained on her again, however, she faltered. Helplessly, she stared at him, dozens of questions reeling through her mind, but unable to voice a single one of them aloud. She grabbed a piece of toast without looking and placed it on her plate. When she focussed her attention on her meal, she could tell the exact moment that his intense gaze was directed elsewhere.

They sat in uncomfortable silence, at least on Hermione's part. She buttered her toast and added some raspberry jam. It was impossible, however, to eat more than a single bite. With all the recent events still running rampant in her mind and the prospect of having to go to the Ministry and present a coherent story to the high-ranking Ministry officials, she found that her appetite was non-existent. The miniscule quantity of food she had eaten so far had only proven to add to the feeling of nausea.

So instead of eating, she pushed her toast around on her plate and drank some tea. But even that grew cold, because she was staring off into space. She just didn't understand Snape's reaction. Or lack thereof. Seeing that he had had no problem scolding her for years when most of the time he had known her to be perfectly innocent, she fully expected him to scold her now. Surprisingly, she found that he totally ignored the issue now that he had good reason to be furious with her; it was disconcerting.

She chanced a glance at him, to see he was still immersed in his book. Another quick glance learned that it was a book on Runes and she immediately understood what he must be doing.

"Are you working on the translation of how to break the binding of the Geminis Fortunae?" she ventured.

Snape looked up briefly. "Yes." Even. Cool.

"Oh." Hermione said rather timidly and was once again quiet.

After a moment her scholastic instincts took over.

"Have you found fault with my translation?" Even to her, her voice sounded too anxious.

Again, the Potions Master redirected his gaze from his book to the young woman to his right. "No, Miss Granger, I have not."

It sounded as if he were going to leave it at that, but after a moment of that considering gaze of his, he explained.

"There is just something about this part of the translation, which gives me the feeling that I am missing something important."

He pointed at the phrase _the pureblood touches no such harm._

"That specific combination of Runes can indeed be translated as pure of blood, like you have, but there are other possible translations as well."

Hermione, back on safe ground with an academic discussion felt enough at ease to put in: "Yes, but those would boil down to pretty much the same thing."

"True," Snape consented, fixing her with a penetrating glare, "but I rather thought _you_ would understand by now how a small bit of extra… – he hesitated for a moment, considering her while he pondered the right expression – …_information_ can change your understanding of matters immensely."

Hermione looked over to the raven-haired man to her left, suspicion clearly on her features. He merely pulled up an eyebrow as if daring her to refute his statement. Other than that, he showed no emotion whatsoever.

"I see..." she hesitated. When he remained silent, she continued: "You mean to say that what sometimes appears to be a less appropriate solution at first, can turn out to be the detail that may enable you to solve the puzzle and achieve your goal?"

Snape nodded in response to her answer.

"Exactly," he said softly and with conviction.

The Gryffindor searched his eyes for some hint as to what it was he was referring to, but as usual, there was little there she could decipher.

Professor," she said, "do you think now is one of those instances as well?"

His gaze never left hers while he considered this question. Hermione felt as if he could see every single thought that came up in her mind.

"It could be," he conceded.

Hermione felt herself drowning in the immense depths of black, trying to figure out what he was saying. All of a sudden, she felt as if it was all too much and attempted to revert to a less dizzying way of communication.

"What alternative translation would you suggest then?" she asked, somewhat breathlessly.

She thought she saw his eyes narrow almost imperceptibly, but it could also have been a trick of the light. When he answered her in a perfectly normal tone of voice, she thought she must have imagined it.

"I think _untouched_ would be better. It is less restricting than _pureblood_."

"I can see what you mean," Hermione replied in awe; her translation had not been incorrect per se, but his left more options open. It would maybe prove helpful in finding the solution. "I would never have thought of that," she confessed candidly.

Again those dark eyes were fixed on her, intent as ever.

"Just remember that sometimes the most important facts are in the nuances, Miss Granger," he said, "life is lived in shades of grey."

And with that puzzling remark, he took his book and left her alone with her thoughts.

* * *

While Hermione Granger sat at the breakfast table in the Great Hall of Hogwarts by herself, on the other side of the country a woman was sitting on her bed, equally deep in thought. The bedroom was of a handsome size and decorated with taste. Two large, panelled windows let the daylight in. All in all it was a very pleasant room.

At the moment, however, it looked an absolute mess. Clothes, toiletries and personal belongings were scattered everywhere. The couch on one side of the room was covered in robes, strewn over its surface seemingly in great haste. On the bed there were more clothes, waiting to be packed and a large, opened suitcase. In fact, it was rather astounding that between all that there was on the bed, the woman herself had found some place to sit.

She wasn't beautiful or even pretty, this woman, especially now that a frown was marring her features. The woman herself didn't mind; having plain looks served her purpose much better. People tended to overlook or readily forget a woman that was neither particularly beautiful nor particularly ugly. And that is exactly how she liked it; anonymity was greatly undervalued in her opinion.

Especially after what she had found out the night before. Her mistress had been most anxious that she would visit a friend, saying that it had been too long since she had had a night to enjoy herself. Knowing that her wellbeing rarely concerned the aristocratic woman, the sudden philanthropic urge was more than suspicious. It was rather fortunate said Mistress had been too distressed to notice that she had returned almost immediately after she left the house last night. What she saw had proven that her instincts were still as sharp as ever. And it allowed her to take action before the net closed in around her.

A sound from another part of the house spurred her from her unpleasant thoughts and reminded her that there was not much time. She began rapidly throwing her possessions into the suitcase, not caring whether or not they'd be rumpled later. At least the enlargement charm she had cast on the ordinary-looking suitcase would ensure that there was enough space to accommodate all her belongings.

She was finished in a matter of minutes and with a satisfied 'snick' the suitcase was closed. The woman cast one last look around the room, to make sure she hadn't forgotten anything. Satisfied on that count, she walked over to the full-length mirror. Staring back at her was an ordinary-looking, middle-aged woman in somewhat outdated, Muggle clothes. If such a woman were to walk through London, no-one would spare her a second glance.

Giving her reflection a curt, approving nod, she checked that her wand was still secure in her right sleeve. Then, she took the suitcase in her left hand and with a 'pop' Maeve Jaminon was gone.

* * *

As it turned out, Hermione had little time to speak to Lucius before they headed for the Ministry and hardly any time with him alone. Even though she had lingered at the breakfast table, in an overt attempt to try and talk to him there, she had only been granted the company of Harry and Ron. Having decided that it was no use to keep postponing her meeting with Lucius it was rather disappointing that he didn't show up for breakfast. She had reasoned it would be better to see him in the familiar territory of Hogwarts, rather than having to go to the Ministry and spend the day in the same room as him, without them having resolved their… well, she didn't know what to call it…. Oh, her thoughts were giving her a headache! It was all so confusing.

Fortunately, breakfast with Ron and Harry was a relaxed affair. With the two of them discussing Quidditch-moves and displaying a healthy appetite she felt as if they had gone back to their schooldays. The only tense moment had been, when Harry had asked her what had happened to Lucius the previous evening.

For one horrifying moment Hermione thought he knew all about her kissing the blond wizard. Then it dawned on her that he was simply inquiring about Lucius' health and she mumbled that it had been a false alarm and that he was fine.

Harry had eyed her curiously and even Ron had asked her if she was al right. She had managed to silence them on the subject, although she didn't think that either of her friends quite bought her assurance that she had only slept poorly and there was nothing the matter with her. After that, she was too nervous to even finish her tea. With a sigh, she had excused herself from breakfast, making a joke that Ron's eating habits hadn't changed since his Hogwarts' days.

"Hey! I need to keep my strength up!" Ron had cried indignantly.

"I wasn't talking about the truly extraordinary amounts of food you manage to consume, Ron. I meant that you still can't be bothered to empty your mouth before you start talking!"

At that, Harry had burst out laughing and Ron had looked as though he was forcefully suppressing the urge to stick out his tongue. It had been a good chance for an inconspicuous retreat, without Harry having the chance to ask her how she really was.

Determined, but slowly, she had made her way up to the hospital room that was once again Lucius's. She knocked and before her courage could leave her, stepped inside. Professor Snape stood at the foot of the bed and Lucius himself was at the window, looking out over the Hogwarts grounds. Both men turned around when she entered.

"Good morning," Hermione said, her voice sounding hoarse to her own ears.

Lucius nodded curtly and Professor Snape studied her face for a moment before he left, robes billowing dramatically as usual.

Hermione waited for him to close the door, before she turned her attention back to the man before her. There was an awkward silence in the room, neither of them quite knowing what to say.

"I really think he uses a spell for that, don't you?" she asked in an attempt to break the ice.

"A spell to do what, Miss Granger?" His voice was cooler than she was used to from him. Of course, it could be the inane subject.

"His robes…the billowing…" Hermione faltered under another penetrating look. What was it with these Slytherins? Did they get additional classes, unbeknownst to the other Houses where they were taught how to walk proudly, glare menacingly and stare at people in a fashion that led said people to believe that they were able to see any and all thoughts going through their head? Shaking off such stupid deliberations she ploughed on bravely.

"I think he spells his robes to billow even more dramatically than they naturally would, just so he can scare more people out of their wits."

She attempted to smile at her own feeble joke, but found that her facial muscles wouldn't allow more than a nervous twitch. Lucius smiled a benevolent little smile, but to Hermione he didn't look particularly amused. It could have been the fact that he was wearing forbidding black robes today, giving him a stern appearance and strongly reminding her of the old Lucius. His hair had been carefully brushed away from his face and freely flowed over his shoulders in waves of silvery moonlight. The resemblance to his counterpart was downright creepy.

For the first time since she had known him she felt truly uncomfortable. She had always been able to tell the difference between the two of them by the sparks of warmth hidden deep in the real Lucius' grey eyes. Today there were no such sparks to be found. He was looking at her with an appraising look that he had never used on her before either. Strange enough, Hermione felt as if she had been found wanting. Was this all because of that one kiss? She had expected him to be angry with her, but she had not foreseen this complete withdrawal. He couldn't mean to break off their friendship entirely, could he? Fear immersed her heart and she nearly choked on the sensation. No, anything but that! Without stopping to reconsider, she hastily stepped forward and launched into the speech she had rehearsed in her mind over and over again.

"Lucius, I am so sorry…" she extended a hand to him in pleading, even though there was still half a room dividing them, "I don't know what came over me, but I promise you it will never happen again. It was totally inappropriate and unprofessional and I understand that you are angry with me…"

He seemed quite taken aback with the sudden waterfall of words coming from her mouth. For a moment he didn't respond at all. Her ranting halted when he pulled up one eyebrow, whether in surprise or disdain, she could not tell. Having spilled her thoughts to him like that, without reserve, she found she could not form another coherent sentence. She was breathing a little faster due to her passionate plea.

"Miss Granger, please," Lucius said. It sounded almost as if there was disapproval in his voice. Hermione felt dread rising up in her. She searched his face for any sign that all was not lost, that it was still possible to salvage their old understanding, that she had not ruined everything in one moment of thoughtlessness. Yet she found none: she couldn't read his face anymore. He wouldn't allow her. For a moment, she thought she saw a glint of insecurity, but it was gone so soon, she could only assume she had imagined it.

His face was completely devoid of emotion, much like she had known it for years. The man she had come to know over the last two months had vanished and was once again replaced by the Lucius Malfoy she had known for years before that. The overwhelming feeling of sadness and defeat threatened to crush her and it was all she could do not to burst out crying.

The hand that she had extended to him slowly sunk back.

"I'm sorry," she whispered again. She turned around and for the second time in less than a day, fled the room.

* * *

All of them had been silent and the mood somewhat grim when they were preparing to floo to the Ministry. After the raucous comments of the day before nobody had a doubt in their mind how today's visit would play out. Lucius seemed determined not to show any emotion, like the day before, but Hermione had thought she could detect some anxiety. Professor Snape looked even more forbidding than he usually did and Harry and Ron weren't cracking jokes or discussing Quidditch for a change. Draco appeared to be quite calm and resolved. She detected a rather protecting air towards Lucius in him. In the midst of all that, Professor Dumbledore managed to exude confidence and serenity.

As for Hermione herself: she was quiet and withdrawn. When they gathered in the Headmaster's office, she had kept close to the bookshelves, blending in the background with a skill to rival the Potions Master's. After her short confrontation with Lucius that morning, which had only resulted in furthering the rift she felt between the two of them, she felt defeated and sad.

She hardly dared look at Lucius, only when she could be certain that the blond wizard was looking away from her. Draco had picked up on her mood and she had tried to give him the same excuse as Ron and Harry, but he didn't even let her finish the sentence.

"If you are going to try and lie to a Slytherin, I suggest you practise some more Mione," he had said. Hermione had thrown a pleading look his way. The younger Malfoy had narrowed his eyes, before he nodded slowly and started to turn away from her. The Gryffindor was about to sigh in relief when he turned back.

"But you are going to tell me what is going on after we get back tonight," he said sotto voce and with conviction.

The prospect of having to talk to Draco was only adding to her distress. The Slytherin was much too perceptive. Hermione was rather afraid that he had his suspicions already, judging by the way he was sometimes looking from her to his father. And it would not be easy to evade his questions. She knew him too well for that. He would not rest until he knew what was bothering her and as she had just proven yet again it was impossible to lie to him. She was not particularly looking forward to telling him she had kissed his father, passionately and she was desperately thinking what to do to throw him off the scent.

Emerging for the second day in a row from one of the Ministry's fireplaces, in the lead of their little group, Hermione found that it did not get easier with practise. If anything, it was even more difficult than the day before, because now all of them knew exactly what they could expect.

As soon as she stepped from the fireplace, like the day before, everyone in the Atrium fell silent. Being the first to arrive, she stood there all alone facing a crowd of witches and wizards, staring at her, utterly silent and with none-too-friendly looks on their faces. Apparently it was common knowledge who she was escorting. Her stomach clenched painfully in dread, but she refused to let her uneasiness show. She righted her back and straightened her shoulders. She held her chin up proudly and looked defiantly at the crowd, daring anyone to comment. If Lucius could do this, so could she.

Their progress through the crowd was much easier than the day before, since there were guards posted in the reception area, which made sure that people were kept at a distance. The shouting and cursing however, was even worse than the first time. It seemed almost as if all of those witches and wizards who hated 'Lucius Malfoy' the most were assembled at the Ministry. Hermione could not but assume that word had gotten out. She was glad she was in the lead; it assured her that she would not have to look at Lucius and maybe catch a glimpse of what he was feeling.

Even though she was tremendously worried about the state of their friendship, she had to admire the way he kept his emotions in check while facing a trial like this for the second time in as many days. She could practically feel his proud stature behind her.

She also imagined she could feel his gaze burning holes in her back, but she told herself that it was merely wishful thinking on her part.

The closer they got to the conference room they had occupied the day before, the more she pushed thoughts of Lucius to the back of her mind and concentrated on how she wanted to present their evidence on the use of the Geminis Fortunae.

When they arrived, Cornelius Fudge and Amelia Bones were already waiting for them. The grey-haired witch looked serious and Hermione thought she saw a hint of displeasure in her countenance, but it was hard to tell. Fudge on the other hand looked decidedly gleeful. Knowing the man, it could not be a good sign.

The impostor Lucius was present as well, sitting opposite from the Minister and the Head of the department of Magical Law Enforcement. In spite of the grey prisoner's robes and the two Aurors standing next to his chair, he managed to look insolent. Narcissa Malfoy sat in the middle of the room, close to the wall, as if too near a presence to either the other Lucius or the Ministry officials was distasteful to her. She looked absolutely splendid in robes the exact colour of pistachio ice-cream; combined with her blonde hair and pale complexion, she was like an aquarelle painting come to life.

Behind Fudge, there were two more Aurors and a wizard she had never seen before: he was of moderate height and very thin. The threadbare robes he wore hung around his frame as if they were several sizes too big for him and in contrast to Remus Lupin the less-than-stellar shape of his robes gave him a nasty appearance rather than a friendly one. His brown hair was thin and reached his shoulders in lank wisps. It looked like it hadn't seen a brush in a while. Combined with the stern lines of his face, with bushy eyebrows, eyes that lay deep in their sockets and a prominent nose, he had a complexion that made Professor Snape look positively glowing with health.

But what bothered Hermione the most were his eyes.

Pale blue with a see-through quality to them that reminded you of coloured glass, they gave the young woman a distinctly uneasy feeling. She didn't know how to account for it, but she just knew that this man was trouble.

Fudge, at least, seemed very pleased with the man, since he hardly waited for them to enter the room before he introduced the unknown wizard.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, may I introduce you all to Mr. Gibson. He is the Ministry expert on this case and he will be presenting his findings first thing this meeting," he announced.

"Excuse me, Minister," interrupted Snape with very thinly veiled dislike in his voice, "didn't we agree upon Miss Granger presenting our findings first, before the Ministry would start their own investigation?"

Fudge turned to face the Potions Master with a smile, which was scarier than if he would have ordered the Aurors to arrest him on the spot for arguing with the Minster of Magic.

"My dear Professor Snape," he started in a syrupy voice. Hermione felt a shiver go down her spine and she saw that the black-haired wizard was making an effort to refrain from reacting to the fake friendliness. "You must agree with me, that it is of the utmost importance in this case that we find out the truth of what happened. Therefore, I decided that it would be most expedient to start up our investigation right away. Mr Gibson here is a true expert in the field of appearance-altering and he is the logical choice for this assignment. If, after he finishes presenting his findings, there are things still left unsaid, I am sure we can find some time to hear Miss Granger's… eh…_discoveries_."

It looked as if the Potions Master was going to dispute, but the Headmaster's serene voice settled everything before he could even draw breath.

"That will be fine, Cornelius."

Fudge smiled triumphantly at that and urged them all to take a seat. Without further preamble, Gibson started to 'present his findings'.

"I have looked at this case closely and in my opinion the only spell that could have been used is the Geminis Fortunae." As he said this, those creepy eyes of his settled briefly on Hermione, as if daring her to argue his point. His voice was cold and about as nasty as his looks. She lifted her chin a little and stared defiantly back at him, but remained silent.

"Now, this spell works, by binding the person who is to look like someone else, the Recipient, to a certain artefact with the victim's blood and some highly restricted substances. As long as this binding-ritual is not reversed, the spell itself is almost impossible to undo, save for the wizard who originally cast it. In this case however, we can assume that said wizard is…deceased." Again, the pale, almost lifeless eyes roamed around the room, glaring at each of the Hogwarts students and Professors in turn. Fudge was still looking too self-satisfied for Hermione's tastes.

"Seeing that the binding depends on the Recipient keeping the artefact with him at all times, the Ministry has conducted a thorough search of the cell and the person of the Lucius Malfoy that we have in our custody."

Gibson waited for a heartbeat before continuing his tale, to make sure he had their full attention; everybody in the room was aware of the importance of what he was about to say. Unconsciously Hermione leaned forward in anticipation. She was anxious to find out what item had been used in the binding, certain that it would allow them to reverse the entire spell.

"We have found absolutely_ nothing_ that could have been used in the binding of the Geminis Fortunae."

At this, Hermione's mind went blank for a moment. All she could do was stutter: " Wh-what?"

Gibson's cold eyes locked onto hers and he smiled a truly malicious smile.

"We did not find anything, Miss Granger," he repeated, enunciating every word as if she were a particularly slow two-year-old.

"That cannot be!" Hermione cried out before she could stop herself.

Next to her, she felt the tension building in Harry and Ron, both of them angry for the implied insult and on her other side Professor Snape was gripping the armrest of his chair so tight that his knuckles were paler than Malfoy's skin. She didn't dare look at Lucius himself.

Dumbledore brought some calm back to the meeting again. "I am sure there must be a logical explanation for all this and I feel certain that we will find it," he declared.

"But of course," said Gibson, still with that malicious pleasure dancing in his eyes. It gave Hermione the feeling that the remark had been exactly what he had been waiting for and it worried her.

"Yes I daresay we will," Fudge added, "but since we cannot know what exactly is going on now and the evidence we have gathered thus far is mostly circumstantial, I feel it is imperative we incarcerate _both_ Lucius Malfoys until we know how to tell the real one apart from the impostor."

Hermione felt like someone had punched her in the stomach. She was dimly aware of the fact that around her several people had started protesting vehemently and Professor Snape had even jumped out of his seat. But, when asked later, she could not for the life of her remember what any of them had said. All she was aware of was that they were going to imprison Lucius…their Lucius. It could not happen! He had been imprisoned for over twenty years, at the whim of a madman. If they'd imprison him again, he would go mad.

She looked at Lucius, her shock clearly visible on her face. He was looking at her. Even his formidable strength and ability to disguise his emotions were not enough to mask his feelings now. There was nothing but sheer terror on his face and his eyes seemed to plead with her to please, _please_ not let this happen. The distance she had felt between them that morning was, for the moment at least, completely forgotten.

She was absolutely frozen and unable to even speak. All she could do was gaze back at him, incapable of looking away from those grey eyes, so full of emotion.

'I'm sorry,' she seemed to say with her eyes, 'I am so sorry.'

With all her attention focused solely on Lucius, she was completely oblivious to what was being decided until one of the two extra Aurors placed a hand on Lucius' shoulder. He blinked, thereby breaking eye-contact with Hermione and looked up at the Auror. As they began to pull him from his seat, their hands firmly clasped around his upper arms, Lucius locked stares with her again. By now _he_ seemed to be apologizing with his eyes, what for Hermione did not know. Then there was just resignation as he rose to follow the Aurors and averted his eyes.

This could not be happening! They could not do this! Didn't they know how hard this would be on him? He had only just begun to heal; for two months only had he known people that cared for him again. And now it was all to be taken away, because Fudge was a complete idiot who held an infantile grudge against Albus Dumbledore?

There had to be something she could do… think, Hermione, think! But somehow, thinking had never been this hard before. Even when facing Voldemort, side by side with Harry and Ron, she had been more rational than she was now. Strange as it was, it seemed like it had never been more important to prevent something from happening.

If only they had more evidence, anything to prove that their Lucius really was the real Lucius Malfoy. In her heart there wasn't a shadow of a doubt about that. But that would hardly convince that idiot Fudge, much less the nasty excuse for a human being, Gibson. She had to do something substantial, something they could not ignore. Oh, if only they had known this morning that this was going to happen, then they could have worked some more on the Runic translation. Maybe there was something else they could change about it …

Not that any of it mattered now. She simply could not let them take Lucius to Azkaban. It would kill him. If not literally, then at least… no, best not think of that. She had to stop them, she just had to!

She caught one more glimpse of those silver eyes, lacking the life and intelligence that had sparked in them not so long ago. It was all she needed to wake up from her stupor. In the blink of an eye, the conference room, the people in it and what they were doing came back into focus.

Harry and Ron were furiously debating with Fudge.

Professor Snape was very uncharacteristically yelling, which only proved to Hermione that he knew exactly what Azkaban would do to Lucius…and how deeply he cared about his friend.

Draco stood next to his father, as always, arguing with the two Aurors; Lucius seemed to already have resigned himself to his fate with an ease that sent shivers down Hermione's spine. The Aurors had apologetic looks on their faces and declared they were only doing their job.

Fudge had a smug smile on his face and was looking from Lucius to Dumbledore and back; he didn't even seem to notice that Harry and Ron were talking to him. Amelia Bones looked disapproving, period.

The next thing Hermione knew is that she was standing behind Lucius. Her right hand was on his left shoulder and she physically kept the Aurors from leading him from the room.

"Wait!"

* * *

**AN**: the name of Lucius' newest nemesis is not arbitrary...anyone see the link?


	15. Revelations

**Disclaimer**: I'm a redhead, not a blonde… I live in the Netherlands, not the UK… I was born in 1979, not 1965… I did most certainly NOT give birth to a daughter recently….how likely do you think it is then, that I own the rights to Harry Potter?

**AN**: Hello there, everybody! I must say I have been dreadfully busy with uni work and likely will be for another week. Have a test coming up (as I already mentioned in the last chapter) and need to prepare for that… I only need to work my way through roughly two inches of notes, so who's complaining anyway? ;-)

I must say (on a complaining note) that I had the impression the last chapter didn't get as many reviews as I normally get :-( Maybe it is just me being morose or something. After taking a closer look, the difference wasn't that big, so I suppose it is because of blasted FFN being off- en online off and on for a couple of days…

Anyway let's get on to more pleasant things, shall we?

**Jo**: I managed to shock _you_ by sending Lucius to jail? I must confess: I was totally shocked too!! 'reading so fast your eyes hurt' is another very sweet way of saying how much you appreciate the story. Thank you so much for that: it means the world to me.

**Aurelione**: I am so sorry you had to wait so long before old FFN let you read the chapter! I had the same problem myself the other day, and I must agree it is a damn good way to piss someone off! ;-) Oh… and about the Gibson character: no, there's no Eric Gibson in this story. Thanks for reviewing (five times no less!)

**PallasAthena1**: thank you for the compliments! Hm…will I really let Lucius go to Azkaban? Well, it wouldn't be any fun if I told you now, would it? Lol. See for yourself: the answer's in this chapter. And you are not close about Gibson… you are absolutely right!! Okay so maybe it wasn't so hard, but hey, I never said it was an extremely clever name ;-) thank you for reviewing!!! Btw: are you going to update Grey soon…alsjeblieft?

**Laurie**: thank you for the kind compliments; they really make my day. About the link: Pallas Athena1 guessed correctly. That's all there was to it.

**Shyngr8**: yes Lucius was behaving oddly, wasn't he? I am not sure myself yet what that meant… I am sure we will all find out in some upcoming chapter. Likewise about the disappearing woman, haha. I will try not to neglect my uni work. Thank you for your concern and lovely review, as always.

**Poemzie the Phoenix**: don't worry dear: I don't think I know anyone who is the living equivalent of my Mr. Gibson. My my my, isn't he a nasty piece of work? Thank you for your offer of having your boyfriend beat him up for me, but I think I'll put Hermione on his case instead…how's that? ;-) Good luck with your story and welcome to the world of writer's-block-plagued, review-addicted hobbyist-writers, lol.

**Zaralya**: that was such an utterly sweet and satisfying review! Really, you had me smiling every time I read it! Oh and by the way, thank you for your stories: you have now hooked me on Tom Riddle (to everyone else who is reading this comment: I know it sounds gross, but really, there are some brilliant fics out there) and the wonderful Blaise Zabini. I must say, I really, _really_ am beginning to appreciate Slytherins :-)

**Mary**: thank you! Yes, we all feel for poor Lucius, don't we? I really hope Hermione thinks of something brilliant to help him out ;-) Hope you enjoy!

**Shadowwarriors-angel**: don't apologize for babbling, ever! I really like your lengthy reviews and if I had more time, I'd write you an e-mail in gratitude. Your questions are all valid and some of them will be answered this chapter already. Others, however, as always, will go unanswered for a little while longer… Thank you so much for reviewing.

**Sarcastic22**: I love it that you get so happy from an update by me. Love your enthusiastic reviews as well, now that I mention it ;-) Congratulations on your beta! Well done! I hope I haven't kept you waiting too long, I know this was a particularly cruel cliffie. I know, because I have been dying to write the next chapter, lol. Sometimes, even though I am the author, I need to write things down to know what is going to happen exactly as well! Sorry about misunderstanding you about the name thing: if your name's Rosa, then all species of rose are named after you! Or the other way around ;-) Thanx!

**CharmedLeoLvr**: so many questions! I thought I'm not a cruel person, but maybe that is not entirely true… ;-) this is quite a revealing chapter though. I hope you enjoy and thanks for the review!!

**Artemis Moonclaw**: I wish I had your ability to get the point across in only a couple of words :-) We'll see more of Maeve in later chapters and of course an explanation of what she is doing in the previous one. Thank you for reviewing.

**The Mad Madame**: Not up to snuff you say? You gave a critical analysis of everything that happened (as usual) and I will certainly be looking at this review, when I am writing upcoming chapters. I am sure it will prove most helpful. Thank you so much once again for the time and effort you invest. It will not go to waste, I promise!

**Star-angel23**: I am flattered once again my story manages to evoke so many emotions in other people. Funny you should mention Hermione saying something like that she would take in Lucius… I have toyed with the idea of having them convince Fudge that they would be responsible for Lucius and postpone what happens in this chapter now. I'm glad it turned out like it has, especially after seeing that you agree with me! I hope that the resolution of the scene is to your liking. Thank you for reviewing!

**Silver Dragon Myst**: wow, I love your alias! Gorgeous name, really. It is not a long lost twin, I disclosed that in one of the early chapters. Well, sort of anyway ;-) I hope you enjoy the next instalment and thank you most graciously for dropping me a line!

**DracoDraconis**: I'm not sure if you're still reading this story, since I gather from your name you're a Draco-fan. If you read this: thanks for reviewing and I hope you don't mind the main male character being Lucius :-)

**Smallsparrow1**: oh a kindred spirit! Okay, this is going to sound really like I'm sucking up to you, but I agree with everything you say! I also hate reading unfinished but very good stories, I love happy endings and as I mentioned above, I am absolutely appreciating the Slytherins! If you like a DM/HG pairing, I can recommend the stories by Cyropi; she's utterly brilliant! I especially like Journals myself (it's finished, don't worry). For HG/SS a terrific writer would be Strega Brava. You'll find the authors and stories mentioned listed in my favourite stories. Feel free to take a look, but look for the word 'completed', if you don't want to end up halfway through, without the next chapter being posted. Thank you for a wonderful review and the kind compliments on my story. Please let me know what you think of the next chapter.

**Fawkes-in-love**: thank you. I don't know what to say to someone who thinks I'm the best. Well, besides thanking you a million times. And hoping you'll like this chapter as well.

**Sunny moonlight**: I am glad I made you like Lucius. Rather fond of the chap myself, actually ;-) And you think Narcissa's evil as well? I should start an opposite-of-fan-club for her, haha. Thank you so much for the review and hope you like the next instalment!

Okay, there're a couple of more things I wanted to mention.

First of all I promised Lady Lizzie I would advertise her story 'Money': it's a cross-over between HP and Blackadder, with our dear Lucius as Blackadder, Wormtail as Baldrick and Lord Voldemort as Queenie (suits him, don't you think? ;-) Anyway: I laughed myself silly and thought 7 reviews were not nearly enough. So if you don't mind a parody and like Blackadder, give it a go. It can be found in my favourite stories.

Secondly, I wanted to grovel for reviews. I really didn't get as much reviews on the previous chapter as I normally do and I have sorely missed them. I hope it is not because the people, who used to review but didn't now, don't like my story anymore… Please restore my faith in my writing capabilities and indulge me! Please! (imagine author with really big, pleading, puppy-dog eyes, even though hers are grey-green in colour)

Thirdly, I wanted to say I really like the events in this chapter. I have been planning this for a long time (most definitely ever since I wrote chapter nine) and I couldn't wait to get to it, but somehow other things needed to be written down or explained first ;-) The chapter's a bit shorter than what you are used to by now, but I decided I wanted to post it, in favour of having you wait another two weeks while I write some more…

I am turning up the drama again big time, so you have been warned! Since I won't be able to do much writing the upcoming week or so, this chapter resolves a couple of things and for a change I do continue where I left of in the previous chapter ;-) I rather like the result myself and hope all of you will too. Either way, leave me a review ;-)

I present, chapter fifteen, in which Gibson is an even bigger bastard than before and Hermione is forced to consider her career choice.

* * *

To save a Malfoy

Ch. 15 Revelations

Hermione Granger had absolutely no idea what she was going to do. The only thing she knew was that she could not and would not let them incarcerate Lucius. She would sooner go to Azkaban in his stead, than to have the precious freedom taken away from the man she had come to care so deeply about.

Thinking about it later on, she would always wonder how one word from her had managed to silence the entire room. As soon as her voice rang out, clear and decisive, all the arguing going on around her stopped abruptly. Everybody in the room turned to look at her. Well, everybody except Lucius, who kept staring straight ahead stoically. But because of the hand lying on his shoulder she could clearly feel the tension in his body.

And yet, the contact between their bodies, even though they were still separated by his robes, was oddly reassuring. She could feel his body's warmth and the swell of his collarbone just below her fingertips.

"Miss Granger…" Fudge started, obviously about to protest to her intervention. Giving Lucius' shoulders a quick, reassuring squeeze, even though she still hadn't thought of a proper course of action, she searched for something to say.

As it turned out, she needn't have worried: out of the occupants of the room, only three were in a hurry to see Lucius go to Azkaban. The others were in varying degrees on her side.

"My dear Minister," said Snape, his voice once again soft and infused with the silky quality that the Gryffindors at least remembered to clearly indicate impending doom, "I do seem to remember you saying something about Miss Granger getting a chance to have her say, if there were things left unsaid."

The Potions Master smiled at the Minster of Magic in a predatory way, a dark glint in his obsidian gaze. Much as Hermione wanted to insist that she had gotten to know the saturnine Professor since her schooldays and would not be intimidated by him ever again, there was only one way to respond to the decidedly dangerous look on his face. Judging by the rapid bobbing of Fudge's Adam's apple, the esteemed leader of the Ministry had reached the same conclusion.

"Now it would seem to me," Snape paused a minute to look at Hermione before continuing, "Miss Granger does have something to add."

While the look he was giving Fudge and the snivelling weasel Gibson conveyed nothing but contempt and a malicious pleasure in ensnaring them with their own words, the look he cast at Hermione was quite the opposite. In fact, if she hadn't seen it with her own two eyes, she would not have believed that Snape would ever use a look that was so openly approving. For a split second she thought of the countless hours she had spent working diligently to earn his approval, to finally get it by an act of rebellion.

Fate really was ironic.

"Well, Cornelius, don't just stand there. Take your seat, so we can hear what Miss Granger has to say," Amelia Bones said with a hint of satisfaction in her voice, while she poked Fudge in the side none-too-gently.

"Of course," Fudge replied. He sat down with a nervous glance in the direction of Hogwarts' most dreaded teacher. Professor Snape kept his intimidating stance enhanced by his ominous black robes until the other man was sitting, before taking his own seat with a smug smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

Gibson was scowling rather ungraciously, but sat down nonetheless. Hermione simply touched the hands of the Aurors restraining Lucius and one questioning look from her and they simply let go. She directed Lucius back to his chair and kept standing behind him, her hand invariably fixed on his shoulder.

Everybody was sitting down now and they all stared up at her expectantly. Hermione took a deep breath and with it she felt the panic rising up in the back of her throat. What the hell was she supposed to do? What could she say that would prevent the horrible mistake of imprisoning Lucius? Their Lucius. Her Lucius.

"You cannot take him to Azkaban," she blurted out.

Professor Snape looked somewhat disappointed at that statement. Harry and Ron were still looking at her expectantly, certain that she would say something clever any moment now and Dumbledore sat back in his chair, his features perfectly relaxed as if her inane statement was the only logical thing to say.

Fudge and Gibson, on the other hand, had that unholy glint in their eyes again that said to her they were looking forward to doing just that and didn't see her as posing a great threat to their plans.

She felt Lucius' stiffen in response and it was that more than anything, which strengthened her resolve. She straightened her back and forced herself to calm down and think rationally.

"You say that you mean to incarcerate both Lucius Malfoys based on the fact that at the moment it is not possible to determine which one of them is the genuine article, correct?" she said. To her own infinite relief, it sounded like the beginning of a rational argument, even if she still did not really know what she was going to say.

"I think that whether or not our Lucius is the real Lucius Malfoy is beside the point when it comes to deciding if he should be imprisoned. Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley freed _this_ man," she emphasized her point by briefly lifting her hand from Lucius' shoulder, "after he had been a prisoner of Voldemort's for over twenty years. As you know he was brought to Hogwarts so that his wounds could be seen to. It does not make sense to punish him for being the Dark Lord's _victim_."

Starting to warm up to her argument, she continued more vehemently: "And you don't have to take my word for it, that he has been underfed and tortured on a regular basis for the past twenty years. I am sure any halfway decent medi-wizard, -witch or Healer could discover within a couple of minutes that I am not lying to you here."

She looked down at the silver-blond head in front of her, still held up proudly and her gaze softened. "Even if he were an impostor," she said softly, "which I highly doubt, there is no way he could have participated in the crimes that have been committed in the name of Lucius Malfoy."

As she glanced around the room again, the faces of the Gryffindors showed their pride and Amelia Bones appeared to be suppressing a warm smile. Professor Snape had that curious glint of approval in his eyes again. It was decidedly out of character and Hermione thought briefly that she was going to take one hell of a run that night, to process all that was happening.

An unpleasant voice broke through her feeling of accomplishment.

"Be that as it may, but there is no denying the fact, that a Dark Curse has been used; whether or not your Malfoy is guilty of Death Eater crimes remains to be determined after we prove which one of them is the real Malfoy."

Gibson's eyes were as cold as steel as he delivered this statement and Hermione had to suppress a shiver at the look in his eyes. It was obvious he would not give up his victory over them without a fight. A vicious fight.

"It doesn't make sense for our Lucius to be the Recipient. Just think about it: if he were the impostor, the man in custody for Death Eater crimes would be the real Lucius Malfoy. If that were the situation, why would he want to become a carbon-copy of that man? Would it not only get him into trouble?" Hermione countered.

Gibson leaned forward in his chair. "That would apply when you assume the Geminis Fortunae has been cast _after_ the real Malfoy had been captured. Since he was captured after Voldemort's demise that is most certainly not the case. What really could have happened is that your Lucius acted as a double all along, pretending to be Lucius Malfoy, committing crimes in his name, with his face, only to have the spell reversed the moment he was close to being captured. And thus letting an innocent man take the punishment for his wrongdoings."

"That is _exactly_ what we think has happened," Hermione said, letting go of Lucius' shoulder to place both her hands on the table, "only our Lucius was the victim instead of the perpetrator."

Gibson smiled that malicious smile again, showing uneven teeth and the young woman opposite him felt like she had said something right up his alley by accident. Unfortunately, his next words confirmed that suspicion.

"Precisely," he said; his voice was sharp and gleeful at the same time. The sinking feeling in Hermione's stomach intensified.

"And you have no way to prove that it is your man who is the real Lucius Malfoy and therefore no way to prove he is innocent of Death Eater crimes."

He leaned back in his chair and smiled rather smugly at Hermione.

"Have you been listening at all to what I have been saying?" she exclaimed, "All it takes is one examination by an independent Healer to prove that our Lucius was in too bad a physical shape to participate in crimes of any nature!"

"That may be, but we don't know that for certain, now do we?" Gibson argued. "We only have your word for it and you are not even a fully-qualified medi-witch."

"We will arrange an examination by a Ministry expert as soon as possible," Fudge spoke up, "I am sure it could take no more than a couple of days. If your story is confirmed, we will of course release the prisoner immediately."

"He is not a prisoner and my story will check out," Hermione declared with conviction.

"Miss Granger, you do seem a bit slow on the uptake today," Fudge said condescendingly, "As long as we don't have any definite proof that your Malfoy is indeed innocent, I have no other choice but to incarcerate him."

"But you have just as little proof that he has done anything wrong! Whatever happened to 'innocent until proven guilty'?"

"There is enough to justify holding him for questioning, I am sure you have heard of that sometime before?" Fudge asked.

"I don't…" Hermione started, but was interrupted.

"At the moment we have no conclusive evidence that either one of these gentlemen is guilty; perhaps you would have the Minister release the other Lucius as well?" Gibson once again entered the discussion.

Hermione could do nothing but glare at him, her intense dislike clearly visible in her eyes. Of course she did not want the other Lucius to be set free: he would slip away like the eel he was and they would never see anything of him again.

"And you seem to forget," the skeleton-like wizard continued in that nasty voice of his, "that we did not find any Artefact that the other Lucius Malfoy had access to at all times. You did manage to find out that it is imperative the Artefact used in the binding-ritual is not separated from the Recipient if the incantation is to withstand any attempts to break it?" The tone he used was condescending at best.

He continued: "Seeing the case in that light, it is rather more probable that your guy is the impostor. After all, we didn't have a chance to search him for an Artefact…yet."

"If our Lucius was the impostor of the two, don't you think he would have undone the binding by now? What sense does it make for him to let himself get into trouble?"

Gibson shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. "There's no accounting for stupidity," he commented lazily.

Hermione clenched her fists. "Did you consider the information in the 'Namiya Damaya'?" she ground out through gritted teeth, referring to the book with the Ancient Runic that Snape and she had been agonizing over.

"You don't mean to tell me you buy that bullshit, do you?" Gibson sneered.

"I rather think it could contain valuable information," Hermione insisted.

"Oh come on! That book is older that Nicholas Flamel and impossible to translate! I'd rather stick to my own choice of books, if you don't mind."

"The more contemporary sources that list the Geminis Fortunae are not very descriptive of either the spell, the binding or how to break it. The Namiya Damaya is the only book I could find that has some information on how to undo the binding."

"Look, girlie," Gibson bit out, "I don't care how to undo the spell. All I care about is that the only evidence that we have at this point, concerning which one of them is the Recipient and which is the victim, is the fact that no Artefact was found on the Malfoy in custody of the Ministry. This suggests he can't be the Recipient. This in turn suggests that _your_ Malfoy is the guilty party! Was that slow enough for you?"

Hermione was slowly counting to ten, her patience wearing really thin by now. But the worst part of it was she didn't have any arguments left to refute their case.

No, the Ministry didn't have any conclusive evidence that he was guilty, but neither did she have solid proof that he was innocent. Well, except for the Marauder's Map, but that would be of little consequence, since the Ministry didn't know of its existence or accuracy.

And it was very puzzling that an Artefact could not be found on the impostor Lucius. She was certain that particular riddle would keep her busy well into the night the next couple of days, researching. Regardless of that, she had to admit, if only to herself, that it looked pretty bad. Were she in their shoes, she would be suspicious of their Lucius too.

Basically it was their word against that of the Ministry and seeing that the Ministry was the one in charge, Lucius might actually be taken to Azkaban.

Oh God, if only they had known this sooner. She could have worked with Professor Snape on the translation. Surely the replacement of _pureblood_ by _untouched_ wasn't the only improvement he could suggest? But there was no time for that now; Gibson was already rising from his seat, clearly convinced he had won the argument. And frankly, Hermione didn't see what she could say to change that. She didn't look at the faces around the table, afraid of the disappointment she'd see in some and the gleeful malice in others.

It was impossible though, to stop the protective impulse that urged her to place her hand on Lucius' shoulder once again. She squeezed it gently. The gesture clearly said: '_I am so sorry, Lucius_.'

He placed his right hand on top of hers briefly. '_You gave it your best, I am sure. Thank you_.'

His hand was ice-cold and he kept his eyes fixed firmly on the opposite wall. Hermione could have burst out crying at the thought of what must be going through him. How could Fudge be so petty as to allow an innocent man to go to jail, just because he had a bone to pick with Dumbledore? He must realise that it was improbable Lucius had been involved in any of the Death Eater activity, a fact which could be proven in a heartbeat by a basic diagnostic spell. No matter how much he disliked Hogwarts' old Headmaster, he must know that he was not very likely to be deceived and still he couldn't be the bigger man.

And all that that maggot Gibson cared about was getting his way. She didn't know why he disliked Lucius. She had the overall impression that it wasn't some personal grudge against the blond wizard; he appeared to hold a grudge against people in general. That triumphant leer of his gave her the creeps.

It disgusted her beyond words that two such hateful and malicious characters as the two of them were in a position to cause damage to a person as…well…nice as Lucius. Talk as they may about evidence and such, Lucius was definitely less touched by evil than they…

She took a sharp breath and had to suppress the urge to slap her own forehead. Of course!

"Miss Granger," her thoughts were interrupted again by Gibson, the slimy piece of filth; "would you let go of Malfoy, so that the Aurors can take him?"

Hermione looked up into his spiteful visage, shining with glee at causing another human being such pain. If she had wanted to, which she did not, she could not have stopped the upward movement of her chin as she gave him a look that clearly conveyed her condescension for the man, a hint of amusement in the depths of her amber eyes.

"I don't think so," she enunciated clearly.

This time, anger marked Gibson's features and his jaw clenched and unclenched impotently, while he searched for the words that would express the extent of his fury, pale eyes blazing at her. Before he, or anyone else for that matter, could say anything, she quickly continued.

"I think I may have thought of one more argument that may interest you."

"You have spent the last half an hour arguing your case, to no avail I might add. Can't you accept when you've been defeated?" Fudge said with exasperation in his voice. "Let go of the man, Miss Granger. It sounds as if he were your lover rather than your patient!"

For a moment, Hermione was speechless. Of all the ridiculous accusations Fudge could have made…

It was a good thing Amelia Bones was nowhere near speechless.

"Nonsense, Cornelius," she said matter-of-factly, "I, for one, am very interested in any and all arguments that she may have. She has brought up some good points and I will hear what she has to say." Her tone brooked little argument and even the Minister of Magic could not ignore the opinion of the Head of the Department of MLE.

The moment between Fudge and Bones had given Hermione the time she needed to regain her composure. She smiled at Amelia.

"Thank you, Mrs. Bones," she said warmly.

She looked around the table, now more than happy to take a look at her friends' faces. Harry and Ron looked anxious, clearly awaiting her next move.

Professor Dumbledore still had the same serene look he had had all through the meeting, as if everything up until now had gone exactly the way he planned it.

Narcissa was looking from one Lucius to the other apparently trying to decide which one she thought was the genuine article. She looked pale and withdrawn and didn't meet Hermione's gaze.

Amelia Bones was readily waiting for her to start talking, Fudge looked nothing if not peeved and Gibson sent murderous glares her way. No, that gentleman really did not like to be talked back to. If the situation hadn't been so serious, Hermione would have grinned. The other Lucius looked somewhat bored and annoyed. Draco was looking at his father in concern.

Last of all, she looked to Professor Snape. His countenance was grave, but he nodded slowly at her, as if meaning to say that he trusted her. She nodded curtly in reply.

"Now," she started briskly, "would anyone happen to have a pair of scissors?"

A couple of people murmured, Fudge sighed loudly and Gibson muttered something rude under his breath. The Potions Master took out his wand, however, and deftly transfigured one of the quills that were lying on the table into a pair of scissors. Without saying another word, he handed them to Hermione.

"Thank you, Professor."

"Oh Merlin, she's stalling, I tell you!" Gibson said. Hermione wished she could laugh at him, like she wanted to, but she wasn't sure if this was going to work. So she just ignored him and turned to face Lucius; their Lucius, that is.

"Lucius," she said softly, "would you oblige me with a lock of your hair?" The silver eyes locked onto hers and his look clearly said that he thought she had gone insane.

"Excuse me?" It was the first thing he'd said since they had arrived at the Ministry.

"Allow me," she said and, stepping aside so that everybody could clearly see what she was doing, she took a strand of his hair and cut off a good two inches. She smiled reassuringly at Lucius, trying to ignore the panic behind his eyes. 'God, please let this work,' she prayed as she held out her hand for the room to see. Holding the lock of hair between her index finger and thumb, it was easy to see its smoothness and the moonlight colour.

Without explaining what she was going to do, she put it on the table in front of Lucius and made her way over to the impostor. He looked at her with disdain; his grey eyes as cold as they always were.

During all the proceedings he seemed to be trying to be as nasty as he possibly could, but there was not much more he could do, seeing that he actually was in the Ministry's custody. It was not like the two Aurors behind his chair would let him forget that fact. But nasty he was without exception.

"What, you are going to cut my hair too? Although I must admit that being a hairdresser would probably be the best _you_ could ever hope to achieve," he sneered.

Hermione pretended to be deaf and said, like she had done to the other Lucius: "Allow me."

Again, she took a strand of the perfectly silky, silvery-blond hair, the exact same colour and texture as his counterpart's and cut off a good two inches. She made sure that everybody had a good view of it. Then she held up the second lock of hair.

And waited.

Everybody in the room was utterly silent, all of them holding their breath in anticipation for several long seconds.

Nothing happened. The hair hung limply from between her fingers, reflecting the light just like the lock that was on the table in front of Lucius.

She hadn't been wrong, had she? She couldn't be; it made perfect sense! Just as she was about to panic and saw Fudge draw breath to speak, she felt a slight tingle of magic pass through her fingers.

In front of the eyes of everyone assembled in the room, the lock she was holding in her hand went from the pale silver to a dark brown in colour and its silky smoothness turned to a more coarse texture. A glance at the table learned that the lock lying in front of Lucius was unchanged.

Hermione just smiled.

"Does this constitute as evidence as to who is the real Malfoy?" she asked innocently. Her audience was quite honestly stunned, it seemed. The Potions Master was the first to regain the ability of independent speech.

"How did you know?" he asked, veiled curiosity in his voice. She had to be very much mistaken if that was not mirth she saw in the depths of his obsidian eyes.

"_Separated from the charm, its true form will appear_," she recited and shrugged noncommittally "I separated the lock of hair from the rest of him, thus freeing it from the influence of the spell."

If Harry and Ron hadn't been rather uproarishly giving expression to their heartfelt joy, they might not have missed the very rare sight that simple statement caused: Professor Severus Snape with a tiny, but genuine smile. Amelia Bones applauded her, grinning openly now and saying: 'Bravo Miss Granger!' several times.

Miss Granger bent down to her former Potions Professor conspiratorially.

"I got the idea because of the _untouched_: the real Lucius would be _untouched by the spell_," she credited her Professor.

"What?" said Gibson, "How? What rhyme is that? Where did you read it?"

Hermione looked at Lucius and smiled broadly when she saw him sigh in relief. His eyes were practically overflowing with warm gratitude.

"Oh, in a silly, old book called the Namiya Damaya," she said.


	16. Frustrations

**Disclaimer**: If I were JK Rowling…my publisher would probably fire me for not delivering my story on time. Then again… if I were, I probably wouldn't be swamped in homework either ;-)

**AN**: Hello dearies! I want to thank all of you so so much for all the lovely and kind reviews you have written. I have had great trouble with thinking how the story is supposed to continue and the constant and utterly sweet reviews I kept receiving reminded me again and again that there are people out there who appreciate this story and I must not, under any circumstances, give up on it. So thank you for that.

Having said that much, let me get on to apologizing: I am sooooooo sorry it took me so long to come up with this new chapter, but you would not believe how busy I have been with uni, not to mention the fact that I got the flu and was out of the running for almost two whole weeks… trust me, you do not want to know what that does to your schedule when you are in your third year of medicine ;-) Anyway, I promise that even though it may take me a while to update, I will not give up on this story. Your appreciation means too much to me.

Now, let's get on to the personal thank-you's.

**Zaralya**: I am very glad you liked the way Hermione handled the situation ;-) I kind of have a penchant for the guy to be in distress and the heroine to be the one in shining armour, coming to the rescue. Does it show? LOL. Thank you for your kind review, I loved it!

**CharmedLeoLvr**: I cannot begin to describe how reading that last review of yours makes me feel. All the things I try to achieve in my story are being credited by you and that is most gratifying. Thank you so much and I hope you continue to enjoy the story as much as you have been, since that is the greatest reward I could ever get. Thanks.

**Shy-n-great**: I love your being so impatient! It show I have somehow managed to get your attention. And yes, Hermione shut Gibson up. Come on, the guy had it coming! ;-) thanks for reviewing and I hope you are doing well with all _your_ school-projects.

**Inell13**: I don't think there is anything wrong with the way you review! I am highly gratified by it, so no problems there ;-) I totally agree with you on the unusual someone/Hermione ship, those are lovely. I am not writing a LM/HG for nothing… Although, compared to HG/LV, LM/HG might be considered fairly common ;-) I hope you'll enjoy this next chapter as well and sorry for the long wait.

**LinNicole**: thank you for the compliments. Yes, there should be some Hermione/Lucius moments soon. And yes, Narcissa will be taken care of…eventually. Hopeful look duly noted ;-) Please let me know what you think of this chapter as well.

**Poemzie the Phoenix**: yes mom, I'll do my studying first ;-) thanks for the compliment on my Snape. I cannot help but thoroughly like the character. Thanks for picking up on that and for being such a wonderful friend.

**The Mad Madame**: I am repeating myself here, but I am still awed and grateful for the amount of time and effort you put into your reviews. I don't know if I'll ever explain Mr Gibson… I have my idea's why he is the way he is and why Fudge asked him for the job. Btw, I replied to your e-mail, but I think something went wrong with that. Anyway, thank you for reviewing and your thoughts on the story as always.

**Tareein**: I don't know when the impostor will be revealed, but I am glad you thought my hair-trick was clever: I'll tell you I was planning that scene from the start, it just took me longer to get there than I originally thought ;-) thanx.

**Atlas452**: thank you, thank you, thank you. It's nice to hear you enjoy the story so much and I hope you will keep that up. I will also continue my other story, but since I am so busy at the moment, it will probably take some time. I hope you will continue reading the stories anyway.

**Saturngurl123**: I like the last line too. It sort of wrote itself, without me actually thinking much about it, but it has a rather eat-your-heart-out-you-vindictive-snivelling-conniving-little-weasely-excuse-for-a-human-being-ring to it, doesn't it? Thank you for the lovely review.

**V**: Fudge? Blockhead? Puny brain? Now whatever gave you that idea? ;-) Isn't it great to let Hermione kick his (censored)? Thank you.

**Mary**: the fake Lucius? Well, that is for me to know and you to ponder about, for know. But now that I have proven that 'our' Lucius is the real Lucius Malfoy, the next big event in the story is probably going to be revealing the impostor's identity… I think. Thank you for reviewing.

**Munchlettebelle**: when I read your review, I know we must think alike. Wicked!Lucius is fun, to be sure, but I could not help but make him a basically amiable person in my story. I love romance too (well duh! There's news, SnapeSeraphin) and this story will certainly have lots of it. I'll try to incorporate it as soon as possible. It is high time for Lucius/Hermione moments. Anyway, thanx.

**Jo**: It is nice to keep getting reviews from you, since you told me you like it so much that I respond to any and all of them. I love your comment that you liked all the details, because sometimes I have the tendency to have too much details. You really reassured me there. Thank you and enjoy the next chapter!

**Julia**: …… thanx……. So much. I am so honoured.

**Shadowwarriors-angel**: well, as you've noticed, I have not been neglecting my studies ;-) and I still don't mind your so-called babbling. It is nice to know people face the same problems I do. I love you love Hermione's attitude and hate Gibson. I really really don't like him myself. I hope you are doing well and don't have to much analysis homework or tests. Thanx.

**Sunny Moonlight**: well, I thought that, since Hermione cares a lot about Lucius (whether she wants to admit it or not) she would at first panic because she is afraid what is going to happen to him. But then she'd realise she has to do something, hence her solution. Thank you for the review. En ik woon in Maastricht :-)

**Epona Rosa**: this is getting tougher and tougher every time. I am seriously running out of nice things to say and I don't want to say the same to all of you! Yes, I have been watching Alan Rickman closely! I have been watching very closely, not to mention listen: that man's voice and what he does with it is simply divine. Such control and expression. Truly amazing. One of my favourite Snape-scenes (apart from the 'Expelliarmus-scene in HP2) is the one in the third movie where he catches Harry out after curfew with the Marauders' Map. That intense stare of his, never breaking eye-contact, the slow empathic speaking. That is quintessentially Snape to me. thank you for paying me such a wonderful compliment.

**Star-angel23**: I think it is lovely you find my story original. I don't like it much myself either when a story is predictable, so you couldn't have made me a better compliment. And about snape, I just like the character a lot, so I try to make the characterization as good as I possibly can. Thank you as always for a lovely and kind review.

**Sarcastic22**: I adore that you are so utterly enthusiastic and unrestrained. Please don't ever change that: it is very alluring. I am sorry to hear about your appendix, though, I hope you are feeling better by now. As you might have noticed, I am very busy at the moment, hence my speedy (cough) update, but I will try and read your next chapter. Thank you so much and keep it up.

**Aurelione**: hm, so I outwitted JK in the Asian department? That is good to hear ;-) Actually, Namiya Damaya, or however you are supposed to spell it is Sri Lankan. I remember my physics teacher telling us some story about a fellow-scientist in another solar system, by the name of Namiya Damaya. It was merely to illustrate a point about gravity, I believe, but he explained later on that it was the number nine and ten respectively in Sri Lankan. I have no idea why I still remember this some ten years later, but I do and I was trying to think of an unusual sounding title for Hermione's book. I am glad you liked it so much. Thank you.

**Sweetdiva**: thanks ever so much. Glad you like the story and hate Gibson ;-) sorry for the long wait, but I hope you like the next chapter just the same.

**Stargazer starluver**: I think I have seen your name on quite a lot of stories I like as a reviewer, so I am honoured to have captured your attention. Thanks for the review.

**Chantal J**: thank you for the lovely, lovely, lovely review. Everything you say about the storyline and the characters is so nice! You have confirmed a lot of things I am trying to achieve so that is always great for a writer. I can imagine you wanting to delay your coursework, trust me, I know how you feel. Anyway, I hope you continue to like this story and please don't hesitate to tell me what you think. Thank you.

**Artemis Moonclaw**: Yay! I got you to say more words again! (does ridiculous happy-dance). I have to continue until you say so? Well… I can live with that ;-) Maeve will get a bigger part sometime soon, I promise. Thanks for reviewing.

**Slate-one**: woo-hoo, I have got myself a fan! I'll tell you right away: I AM evil. Of course I have evil cliffies! I want all of you to continue reading this story! And besides, it sort of just happens…. Anyway, thanx.

**Corri**: I am gratified that you think Lucius' and Hermione's reactions to their kiss were believable. I thought their relationship is still too young to reach happily ever after already, besides I still have to get rid of Narcissa, lol. Thank you.

**Jaggered princess**: I agree with you on Lucius: he should not be too nice a guy. First of all, there's no fun in a goody-two-shoes Lucius, since that is not who he is. Second, he has grown up in a pureblood wizard family and that has to come with some prejudices and a lot of pride. Thirdly, I don't think Lucius is the kind of guy to just stand by and watch while important things are happening in his life. I have tried to work with that in this chapter, so I hope you like! Thanx for the review.

**Guest**: thanx! Lovely, compact review! ;-)

**Nymphe**: thank you for the comment on my plot. I am afraid I don't agree with your remark on my grammar though. I think it is pretty good, even if I have the tendency to make my sentences too long. Maybe that is what you meant? Thank you for reviewing and I hope you enjoy the next post :-) Like your nickname, by the way.

**Winter delight**: the dark mark? The Mad Madame mentioned something like that as well. Of course, I am not going to reveal what the artefact is here, but you will find out. Thanks for reviewing.

**Shedraconis**: another wonderful review! I can't explain (not even after over 200 reviews) what it does to me to read that somebody really likes my story. Thank you for leaving me this nice message, so I can keep practising on my appreciation-expressing skills :-)

**Mya**: sorry…. It took me ages to update, so I hope I haven't lost your attention. I promise I won't give up on it, even if I am very busy. Hope you're still reading and like the next chapter. Thank you.

**JW7**: thank you for the compliments on my grammar and the varied language. It is something I pay attention to, in the hopes of preventing the story of getting repetitive or dull. I am glad you seem to think I have succeeded. Thank you.

I hope I didn't forget anyone who reviewed. If I have, I am sorry and you must know I appreciate the trouble you took very much.

Well, I have kept you all waiting long enough. Let's get on with it.

I hereby (finally) present chapter 16, in which Hermione is frustrated and Snape shows an unexpected side to his character.

PS: Poemzie the Phoenix, thank you for proof-reading this chapter and giving me the confirmation I needed.

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**To save a Malfoy**

Ch 16. Frustrations

"Did you see his face?" Ron asked with shining eyes, "that was utterly brilliant! I thought Fudge was apoplectic..." he exclaimed enthusiastically, "or….or…" he continued, looking for the most appropriate words to describe the situation, "or like he was going to have a stroke!" The redhead was grinning madly at both of his best friends.

Harry smiled indulgently, knowing from years of experience with his exuberant friend that this was the best way to handle Ron when he was….well, the way he was at the moment. Hermione on the other hand suppressed the urge to point out that 'apoplectic' and 'going to have a stroke' were pretty much the same thing.

The young Weasley hadn't stopped singing Hermione's praises since the moment they were out of the Minister's earshot. Although…he might have already started verbally high-fiving her when Fudge was still within hearing distance.

Harry, who thankfully was a lot less exuberant in his approval than Ron, grinned at her. "And scary. Remind me to never piss you off."

Hermione smiled weakly at him. Their praise was very gratifying, but she had not really been listening. She had been thinking back to the end of the meeting at the Ministry.

After her little demonstration, it had been impossible for either Gibson or Fudge to hold on to their claim that 'her' Lucius needed to be incarcerated based on the fact that it could not be determined whether or not he was the impostor.

Had it been up to the esteemed Minister of Magic and his pet weasel, they probably would only have found another reason to lock Lucius up, but unfortunately for them the, much more amiable, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement had seen quite enough witch-hunting for one day, no pun intended.

As expected, the two men had not been very gracious about it. If Fudge had been about to have a stroke, then Gibson had suffered at least two. Hermione had been afraid that the man was going to choke on his own rage, when he had to watch Lucius get up from the table, without the assistance of Aurors and leave the conference room, surrounded by his Hogwarts entourage.

Hermione couldn't suppress the urge to place her hand on the small of Lucius' back for the briefest of moments. A silent gesture of support…and victory. The proud blond wizard hadn't outwardly reacted, but when she passed him by to take her usual place in front of him, between Harry and Ron, she could see the small smile on his lips from the corner of her eye. It could have been her imagination, but she also thought she saw it widen slightly as Ron began his soliloquy.

She hadn't noticed that Narcissa had tagged along, until they were back in the familiar surroundings of Hogwarts.

"Mione, are you all right?" Ron broke through her train of thought, looking at her worriedly.

"What?" she said, absent-mindedly. She met Ron's concerned gaze. "Oh! Sure, Ron. I'm just a little tired that's all."

The redhead nodded in reply, but the look in his eyes clearly suggested he didn't believe her for one moment. Experience and Hermione Granger had taught him though, that when the girl said she was alright, you were wise to leave it be. Even when you could clearly see she most definitely wasn't.

"Maybe you should have an early night today," Harry suggested. Before Hermione could cast an irritated glance his way and think of an appropriately sarcastic reply about his mother-henning he amended: "I know _I_ certainly will."

Normally, she wouldn't have let him get away with a remark like that, but she was too damn tired. She only gave him a knowing look.

"I am going to head for the library," she said in her and-don't-you-dare-tell-me-I-can't-go-to-the-library-again-voice.

Harry and Ron wisely held their tongues, but couldn't refrain from looking at her with concern in their eyes. Hermione ignored them.

Mere minutes later she pushed against the library door, but instead of stepping inside, she rested her head against it, the door halfway open. Wearily she closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

After the last few days her feelings were in turmoil. She had known from the very beginning that Lucius was going to be a special patient. But she had thought the difference would be in the professional side: he was without a doubt the most interesting and also difficult case she had come across in her short and fairly eventful career as a medi-witch. Or trainee-medi-witch, rather, since she had never actually completed her education in that particular field.

Yet another thing the war against Voldemort had prevented her from doing. She hadn't even wanted to become a medi-witch in the first place. She had been planning on studying her two favourite subjects: arithmancy and potions.

She had even managed to get an apprenticeship with Snape. Seeing that the man was the most brilliant Potions Master of this time, no matter how underappreciated he was, she had been ecstatic.

It hadn't been long though. Within a year the escalating war with Voldemort had forced her to reconsider her priorities and she had decided to give up her apprenticeship in favour of starting medi-witch training. Ultimately, it was what the wizarding world needed the most at the moment and she had set aside her dreams and future goals for the greater good.

The Potions Master, _her_ Master, had understood. He never once spoke to her about it; in fact he had hardly acknowledged her when she had informed him of her decision. He had been working on a potion and she had been too cowardly to tell him to his face, so she remained at the door, from where she could only see his back. He hadn't turned around either. His stirring movements of the potion never faltered, almost as if she hadn't said anything at all. After a moment of silence he spoke, in a voice more expressionless than she had ever heard from him.

"Very well, Miss Granger."

She had fled the room, bursting into tears the moment she was in the relative safety of her own room. Yet she knew, just knew that he would allow her to continue her studies under him when the time was right...and they both managed to survive the war. It had never been said aloud, but they knew.

So the young Gryffindor had started her education with Hogwarts' very own medi-witch, who was more than happy to train her, not to mention have an extra pair of hands. Madam Pomfrey was an amiable woman and quite knowledgeable too.

However, privately, Hermione preferred working with the saturnine Potions Professor. Once you got used to the biting sarcasm (and Merlin knew seven years of his classes were sufficient preparation to be able to do _that_) it was actually quite pleasant to watch his brilliant mind work out the problems. Especially since the potions they'd been working on were challenging enough to garner even the Potions Master's interest. It was much more pleasurable to him to teach _her_ while working on those, than having to teach his often blundering students moderately simple potions _he_ could make in his sleep, blindfolded and with one hand tied behind his back.

Madam Pomfrey, who was quite good at what she did as well, had a much more intuitive gift. There sometimes was little logic to be found in her way of working and even though Hermione learned quite a lot from her, she preferred the methodical modus operandi of Severus Snape, since it was so much more like her own way of thinking. She never said anything of this, of course, but she had a feeling Poppy Pomfrey knew anyway. It was another credit to her excellent instincts that she hadn't brought it up.

And then, before any of them knew what hit them, the Final Battle was upon them. And Hogwarts' matron had died defending the wounded she was tending to, leaving her assistant as the most qualified medi-witch on scene. Her young apprentice had not allowed herself the time to consider who she was treating. She worked on auto-pilot for days on end, never thinking of _who_ it was exactly that passed under her hands. Classmates, Professors, Hogsmeade shopkeepers, members of the Order, Aurors and unknown witches and wizards: they all looked the same after they'd been hit by the Death Eaters' curses.

Hermione forced any and all thoughts that concerned anything other than the victim's medical condition far from her mind, because she knew that if she wouldn't, she'd just break down crying and be useless to any of them. For all intents and purposes she turned herself into an automaton, never resting, never feeling. Even when the Healers from St. Mungo's came and took over the original Hogwarts infirmary and thus relieving her workload tremendously, not to mention the fact that she was no longer the senior medi-witch, she didn't allow herself to rest. There was still too much work to be done. And at least work, could keep her from feeling the impact of the losses she had suffered…the losses all of them had suffered.

And then, there had been Lucius.

After what was undoubtedly one of the most exhausting weeks of her life, Harry and Ron had walked in with that stretcher, a form barely recognizable as a human being on top of it.

Before she knew what hit her, she was more involved with this mysterious man than she had ever been with any of her patients. Somehow, the defences she had had for the entire week didn't work on Lucius. From the moment she first laid eyes on him, she had been determined to save him, come hell or high water.

And she had.

But as of late, she was starting to wonder what it was going to cost her. Not that she regretted saving him. Not in the least…it just turned out to be a lot more complicated than she had thought.

At first it had been just a sense of duty and her natural stubbornness that kept her from giving up on him…even when she found out who he was. But that had changed pretty quickly. As time progressed and she caught glimpses of what he had gone through and got to know him more, she couldn't help but admire him for his courage and his seemingly undiminished capacity to love his son.

After she had managed to sever this 'new' Lucius from the Lucius Malfoy she had thought she had known for years, it was surprisingly easy to start to appreciate his company. Not in the least because both Draco and Severus Snape seemed rather happy to have a Lucius at their disposal that was much more to their liking than the old one had been.

'Oh don't lie to yourself, Hermione Granger!' she scolded herself, 'you would have liked him just fine all on your own, without either Snape's or Draco's approval of his character.'

'Or like him much more than you should, seeing all he wants to do is return to the wife that was lost to him so many years ago. Your feelings are totally inappropriate,' her thoughts continued glumly.

Seeing Lucius together with and hearing him talk about Narcissa had made Hermione realise just how much she had become used to having him around all the time and how she was going to miss his company when he would return to the Manor eventually.

With Narcissa.

At the thought of the cool, elegant blonde, Hermione felt an unreasonable dislike course through her veins hotly. It didn't matter how many times she told herself she was being silly and unfair for disliking Lucius' wife, she couldn't talk herself out of.

The way the woman treated Lucius just made her blood boil. The man had been through enough, without having to suffer the indifference or doubt of his wife, even though it was understandable that said wife was confused by the situation.

The young Gryffindor woman had the ridiculous notion that she _would_ have been able to recognize that something was wrong if Lucius had been her husband, no matter how good the impostor was. To love a man like Lucius had to be a…_singular_ experience.

But then again: she had done the research herself. The Geminis Fortunae was not just any old spell. It linked the appearance of victim and recipient in a way that nothing she had ever seen or read about came close to. And she had always seen either their Lucius by himself or the two of them together, whereas Narcissa had been confronted with only one man, who looked _exactly_ like her husband. Besides, like she once explained to Lucius, the woman had had no reason to assume anything was wrong at the time…

Maybe it wouldn't be so easy to spot the difference after all.

Hermione sighed deeply and finally entered the library.

* * *

The object of Hermione's thoughts was standing at one of the large windows in his living room, looking out over the Hogwarts grounds, deep in thought.

He was startled as someone began to speak from behind him.

"Something on you mind?"

"Dear Merlin, Severus," Lucius commented while turning around, "do you have to sneak up on people like that?"

A corner of the dark-haired Potions Master's mouth curved up.

"Force of habit?" he offered.

"From catching students out after curfew?" his friend enquired sarcastically.

"Something like that."

The tall professor slowly crossed the room in unconsciously graceful movements, to stand next to the fireplace. He turned around to face his friend.

Lucius was still at the window, looking back at him. After a couple of moments of complete silence, the blond wizard approached the fireplace as well, stopping only a few feet away from Snape.

The obsidian gaze was turned towards the flickering flames in the fireplace, the pale face betraying nothing of the thoughts going on behind the indifferent facade. The merry crackling was the only sound in the room and the Potions Professor just stared at the play of the flames, the ever changing shapes and colours…. He watched how the bark of the wood turned greyish-white and how a log would suddenly roll over or fall down the pile, emitting sparks on the way.

It had been an eventful day. And, even though he wouldn't admit it to her at wandpoint, he was pretty damn proud of Miss Granger. It had been her typical Gryffindor way: crediting him for the alteration in the translation of the Namiya Damaya verse, but it had been her brilliance alone that had put the pieces of the puzzle together at exactly the right moment. Yet again, she had saved Lucius; if not from dying literally, then at least in a manner of speaking. Snape was certain the older Malfoy would not have responded well to being incarcerated, however briefly.

Lucius, who had mimicked his pose, suddenly spoke, unconsciously confirming Snape's thoughts.

"I thought I was going to go out of my mind earlier." His voice was deceptively soft; the underlying emotion however was clear.

"One can well imagine," Snape commented dryly, eyes still fixed on the flames.

"The thought of being robbed of this relative freedom, however difficult it may be in itself…"

"Relative freedom?" queried Snape, looking up.

"Come now, dear Severus," Lucius snorted, giving his friend a disdainful look, "don't tell me _you_ have turned into an optimist."

Snape merely pulled up an eyebrow in his signature manner.

"And at your age too," the blond added in a disapproving tone of voice. His fingers started toying mindlessly with the knickknacks on the mantelpiece.

"What put you in this charitable mood, my friend?" asked the Potions Master in his velvety voice, cynicism beneath the surface.

"Surely you jest," Lucius commented, indifferently flicking the lid of a small, engraved silver box that held Floo powder back and forth between his fingers.

"I do not 'jest'. Ask my students."

"I'll be sure to do that. As soon as I can do so without them pulling out their wands or amulets and garlic and Merlin knows what else they come up with, to protect themselves from me."

"Yes, well, they have had an eclectic and frankly rather terrible collection of Defence Against the Dark Arts instructors over the years, so you can't really fault them for not knowing one does not fight a Dark Wizard with garlic."

"Most obliged you cleared that up for me, Severus," Lucius remarked flippantly, still playing with the Floo-box, "so I guess I don't have to worry that when they try to hex me it'll be serious," his voice grew harsh at the last couple of words.

"I wouldn't advise you to underestimate them. Formidable opponents have allowed themselves to be surprised by a bunch of children and I can tell you it wasn't pretty."

"Did you visit for a particular reason, or did you merely come by here to cheer me up?"

"You mean I have to have a reason other than wanting to be in your uplifting company?"

Lucius turned to face his friend, a hard look in his eyes.

"Let me repeat myself: is there any particular reason you came to see me?"

Snape met his gaze unflinchingly. "I wanted to know how you are doing," he commented calmly, his voice now devoid of sarcasm.

Lucius narrowed his eyes. "Huh," he said and turned his attention back to the silver box. For a moment there were no sounds but the crackling of the flames and the noise the box's small hinges made as the lid was slowly opened and closed.

"You never used to be this dim-witted."

"_You_ never used to bottle up everything you thought or felt."

"Yes, well…people change."

Severus Snape watched in concern as the man who had been his first real friend continued playing with the floo box, his expression shuttered.

"Maybe they shouldn't," he commented calmly.

"So what would you suggest I'd do?" Lucius demanded, suddenly incensed. He finally let the floo box be and rounded on his friend.

"Don't cut yourself off from everyone," the Potions Master said quietly, his flat tone belied by the pleading expression in his eyes.

"I can see you have trouble coping with everything that has happened and is happening still and rightfully so."

He didn't flinch at the fiery look in Lucius eyes and held up his hand to halt any rebuttal that might be forthcoming.

"You don't have to do this all by yourself, Lucius."

"I am not _doing_ anything! Dumbledore is pulling strings, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley are testifying, Draco is defending my honour, as are you and I think Miss Granger is _living_ in the bloody library in an attempt to find the answers about this cursed spell, but _I_ can do absolutely NOTHING!"

The silver eyes were shooting daggers at this point in the conversation. Snape only got a brief glimpse though, as his friend turned away and started pacing agitatedly.

"All I can do is going to the meetings with the lot of you, watching silently as others decide my destiny," he said in a disgusted tone of voice.

"And I can't even handle that." Snape knew he was referring to the panic attack incident the night before. He had provided the blond wizard with an anxiety-relieving-potion, cursing himself for not thinking of it before Lucius actually suffered an attack.

"You did well at the Ministry today, Lucius," Snape tried to reassure him.

Lucius made a sound that clearly showed his disgust.

"How can you possibly say I did well? Did you see all those people in the Atrium? They think I'm a bastard, Severus! And now that I've met him myself, I can't say that I blame them."

"Of course not," the Potions Master agreed calmly. "But what you must keep in mind is this: all that these people have seen is an image of you, doing horrendous things. It's that image they hate, not you personally."

"What's the difference? To them, that image _is_ me," Lucius threw up his hands, unable to remain calm any longer.

"It is now, yes. But after word gets out about what happened to you, that will change."

Lucius stopped his pacing mid-stride, to round on his friend. "How can you be certain of that? I know what they are feeling, from personal experience. I know what it's like to hate someone with a passion so deep it is ingrained into your very being, into your immortal soul. How, I ask you, are we to change something as deep-rooted as that?"

"I never said it would be easy."

Lucius laughed bitterly and the sound was chilling even to his own ears.

"Easy? It's goddamn impossible!"

Severus Snape merely raised his eyebrows at his friend's outburst, absently noting his word choice; now where would a pureblood wizard pick up terms like 'goddamn'?

His anger suddenly deflated, Lucius fell into a chair heavily and stared into the fire, despairing.

"When I woke up in a warm, soft bed with somebody tending to my wounds and an old friend at my bedside, I thought I was finally free. Now I see that even though I am no longer chained to a wall I am a prisoner just the same…"

"Don't you dare speak in that manner!" the Potions Master snapped. Now it was he who was unable to keep his composure, which was an unusual occurrence in itself. With a couple of quick steps, he had crossed to where his friend was sitting and placed his hands on Lucius' upper arms, bringing his face uncomfortably close to that of the blond wizard.

"Where is the young man I used to know?" he hissed menacingly, "The one that walked around Hogwarts as if he owned it? The one that was called arrogant by ignorant fools and proud by those who knew better? Where is the man that would bow to no-one? Who only did what pleased him?"

He moved his face even closer and growled: "Where is that man, who never allowed anyone to get the best of him? I ask you Lucius, where did he go? Did he give up, throw in the towel? Is he dead already?"

The volume of Snape's silky voice had diminished steadily to his most dangerous purr, but in spite of that, the last sentence was flung into Lucius' face with biting sarcasm.

Lucius shoved him aside roughly with desperate strength, as he pushed past the professor.

"Yes!" he yelled back, furious once again, "yes, he died! He died the night when he was taken from his home and his family! He died when he discovered he could not keep himself from harm, more importantly, that he couldn't keep his son from harm!" He stood there, looking at his raven-haired friend, chest heaving.

Then, as suddenly as it had flared up, his anger dissipated. His breathing returned to normal and the fire in his eyes was replaced by the chilly silver people were used to of Lucius Malfoy. The change was instantaneous and dramatic. Eerie even. If Severus Snape hadn't already been sure that Lucius wasn't coping well, he had just gotten his confirmation.

The icy composure that replaced the fury of only moments before was more unsettling by far than his anger had been. When the blond wizard walked to the fireplace his movements once again held the natural grace and confidence that came with good breeding. He stared into the fire for a few moments, leaning on the mantle in an elegant pose, before he turned back to his fellow-Slytherin.

In a clear, cultured voice that was discomposing because it was completely devoid of any emotion he said: "Of course he died, you bastard."

Once again it took Snape only a couple of quick strides of his long legs, to be next to his friend. He grabbed him by the shoulders and looked into those cold, grey eyes.

"Don't you dare give up, Lucius! I know you're still in there! Allow me to help you and I will do everything in my power to get you your life back...we _all_ will. But you must help us, or our efforts will be in vain. Don't give up, not just yet."

The grey eyes stared back at him listlessly and Lucius shrugged. "I don't see how we can set the record straight." He resumed staring into the crackling flames.

"We have Albus Dumbledore on our side, you have your son! We have the brightest witch I ever came across in all my years of teaching potions…we even have the bloody boy-who-lived on your side," Snape pleaded.

He paused for a moment, staring intently into Lucius' eyes, as if the will to fight could be infused with a look.

"I have seen much injustice in my life, Lucius," the professor said quietly. "I have suffered it myself, so trust me if I say that I know how you are feeling right now," he continued empathically and earnestly. "And I'll be damned before I let it happen again and to you of all people."

At that, Lucius looked back into those obsidian eyes, for once allowed to plead with him. If he didn't shut himself off completely, the Potions Professor had most expressive eyes, the blond wizard thought absently. Severus really should allow himself to loosen up a bit more.

"What do _you_ know of being hated for something you didn't do, Severus?" he asked tiredly, lacking the energy to shout at his friend to leave him alone with his misery.

Without a word, the raven-haired man let go of his shoulders, his dark eyes never leaving the light grey ones of Lucius. He undid the buttons on the left sleeve of his robes and pushed them up, over his elbow. As he wordlessly showed the underside of his lower arm to him, Lucius involuntarily stumbled a few steps back.

He stared at Severus Snape in shock.


	17. Other people's frustrations

**Disclaimer**: not mine, never will be. Keep dreaming of Lucius, though.

**AN**. Hello there everybody! Well, I can't even say that I'm sorry it took me so long or that this update is shamefully overdue, because that would be a complete and utter understatement. So in favour of getting this chapter ready to post as soon as possible, I'll skip the detailed apologies and explanations why my schoolwork kept me from writing. Suffice it to say that I have been horribly busy with exams and stuff and couldn't find the time to produce a chapter I deemed worthy of uploading. Let's get on to the personal thank-you's.

**Corri**: thank you that you find the explanation of Hermione's career choice plausible and for liking the Lucius-Snape argument. I wrote it ages ago and it seemed to fit in here nicely. I am loving your story on Captain Hook by the way, can't wait for the next chapter. People, if you want to read a good story starring another one of Jason Isaacs fabulous characters, go read "Sailing from Neverland!" by Corri.

**Shy-n-great**: well, you get your wish for more moments between Hermione and Severus in this chapter! I hope you like. Let me know what you think!

**CharmedLeoLvr**: thank you for the fabulous, extensive, glorious review. You had me smiling for days with this! So sorry it took me so long to update, I hope you'll forgive me once more… please?

**Mya**: sorry…I really took long to update. It couldn't be helped though, so I _kindly_ ask you to forgive me ;-)I understand your comment on the narrative part, but sometimes I just feel I have to explain things. When I ever revise this story, I couldtryto express what I want to say in another way. Thank you for reviewing.

**Saturngurl123**: yes, there is some Lucius Hermione in this chapter! I hope you like it. I am planning on a bigger scene between the two soon. It is time to have things progress, don't you think? ;-) anyway, thanks.

**Darkrosepetals122**: you changed your nickname! Anyway…I hope your appendix is all better now and that your gcse's went well… or are you still revising? Aren't you a little Hermione? I hope you like the next chapter. And sorry for taking so long. Tests…homework…presentations…you get the drift ;-)

**Shadowwarriors-angel**: thank you! I loved the compliments about how I related to Hermione's Lucius's and Snape's feelings. In real life, I also like observing people and trying to find out what makes them tick. So I guess when I write a story, I want to show what the characters are feeling. I am flattered that you like that and sympathise with the characters so much. Thank you as always for a lovely review.

**Vodka-tears**: I am very happy I managed to liven up a horrible week for you. I know how you feel. If you get an author alert from that one special story you've been dying to read the next chapter from, it can make you outrageously happy. Thank you, for letting me be that author for you.

**Katharina-B**: I am glad you like the story. I must disappoint you though: this is a Lucius-Hermione fic. I absolutely adore Lucius…have been watching the second movie again and I just adore Jason Isaacs as my favourite bad guy. I think that the age-difference should not be too big a problem. Even in real life it is not only your age, but also the kind of person you are and the things you went through in life that determine whether or not you are suited for a certain person. Added to the fact that wizards have a prolonged life-span I don't think this pairing should be abolished because of the age difference. I can imagine you rooting for Draco-Hermione though. I must say I like pairings of Hermione with almost all of our favourite Slytherins and I am almost sorry for the ones that don't get to be with her in this story. Please keep reading and thanks for the review.

**Chantal J**: thanks! I like the scene between Lucius and Snape too! There'll be more of that in this chapter.

**Deliverance**: sorry to have kept you waiting for so long. Thanks for reviewing, though! Hope you enjoy this chapter as well.

**Sunny moonlight**: I don't know where that comment came from but I thought it was a pretty Snapish thing to say. I wish I were better in coming up with these kind of sarcastic remarks so I am really glad that when I manage to come up with one, you like it so much. Sorry for the long wait, I hope you enjoy this instalment.

**Nymphe**: wow. You have me blushing here! I really enjoyed reading your review and I loved your comments on the Snape-Lucius scene. As for me being brave…well, I just happen to like this pairing and there are too few stories out there. Sometimes I doubt my sanity though, for ever having started on this. It is a difficult balance between keeping them more or less in character, while simultaneously making them fall in love! Thank you so much for the wonderful review!

**Shedraconis**: well, I am trying but as you have noticed my studies have taken up a lot of my time! But thank you for the lovely review, Shannon. Hope you enjoy the next chapter :-)

**Jay**: I was really uncertain about that chapter, so it is lovely to hear you thought it was so good. There's a little fluffy moment between Lucius and Hermione in this chapter, which my beta thought was rather cool…so I hope you like that one too!

**JW7**: (blushes) thank you so much. It is so nice to know you liked the chapter. Hope this next one pleases you once more. Thanks for reviewing!

**Atlas452**: thanks for the reassurance. You don't know how much I fear sometimes that there will be a chapter some day, where everybody'll just say: okay, now that was totally horrible and it ruined the entire story! Thank you for your kind review.

**Lady Norskstar**: I love Alan Rickman too! A friend gave me a copy of the HP movie and it was in Dutch, you know, with Dutch voices? It was terrible! I tell you, Professor Snape without that silky voice is singularly unimpressive! I'm glad to know my love for the character shows :-) Have you read my one-shot HG/SS? If you like Snape…. Anyway, thanks for the brilliant review!

**Artemis Moonclaw**: yep, he showed Lucius the Dark Mark. What can I say: I warned you all in my bio that I'm a drama queen ;-) thank you for reviewing once again.

**SeverusSnape'sLove**: nice nickname! For some reason or other chapter seven always makes everybody cry. I still can't explain how I came up with it but it is one of my favourite chapters to date. I hope you like the next chapter!

**The Mad Madame**: you are making things quite difficult for me. Your remarks are spot-on as always and I fear very much that with this chapter I prove to you that I have done exactly what you have been trying to prevent. You keep me on my toes and you seem to have an uncanny ability for what I am doing. Your feedback and suggestions are greatly appreciated: you make me try harder to make this a good story and I am actually afraid to let you down. I sincerely hope that is not the case. I am trying to put your pointers to good use. I felt like I had to put in some emotional development for the characters though and if you thought I was treading water in chapter 16, you might think that I am treading water still in this one. I am awaiting your judgement anxiously. Thank you very much.

**Ebony ink**: I am awed by your undiluted praise. I feel as happy as a Gryffindor who has just been awarded 50 house points by Professor Snape :-) Reviews like yours make me very scared I'll slip up some day and write a chapter that is absolutely horrible, haha. But I bow to you in gratitude for this incredible commentary. Thank you.

**Ellar Shadow Raven**: thank you so much! I already said above that in real life I also like to watch people and try to find out what they are feeling. I am so glad it somehow shows in my stories. Isn't it amazing that a collection of words can get people to feel emotions like that? Thank you for the wonderful compliment! Oh and there are lots of emotions in the next chapter…as I said, I am being true to my drama-queen nature :-)

**Duchesscarml**: well, the moment where Snape has to explain his deepest darkest secret to Lucius, is drawing near. We have some other confrontations to get out of the way too, so it's going to be a busy chapter ;-)

**Dragonmaster Kurai**: Sorry to have kept you waiting for so long! I hope you enjoy this next chapter.

**BabyRuth**: sad and happy at the same time. Well there's something I could only hope to accomplish and you just told me I did! Wonderful review! Thank you so much!

**Danish Pastry 28**: Well, I hope I have hooked you then. There are not many LM/HG fics out there, but there are some bloody amazing ones! Feel free to check out my favourites :-) and thank you for reviewing!

**Phaet**: thank you for your kind review. And once again, I hope the next chapter does not disappoint you.

**Faery**: thank you for complementing me on the uniqueness of the story. I am glad you approve. Hope you like the next instalment and please feel free to review again ;-)

**CasperBleu**: thank you as well for the wonderful compliments. I know exactly what you mean… I also don't like the Malfoy-is-evil-so-let's-find-a-way-to-blame-everything-on-him-and-a-nasty-way-to-kill-him-plots…which is why I am attempting a slightly different approach. Blame it all on Jason Isaacs! ;-)

Okay. The next chapter is pretty long, so I hope in that way I can make up a little for the fact that I kept you all waiting for so long. I have rewritten it a couple of times and I am pretty nervous about it being any good. In this chapter I delve a little further in the relationships between Draco, Lucius, Snape and Hermione and I am building up to the next event in their quest to clear Lucius of all blame.

I want to thank my lovely beta _Poemzie the Phoenix_, who was so very sweet to read all versions of this chapter and gave me the determination to pull through and the belief that it wasn't all that bad.

Furthermore I'd like to thank _The Mad Madame_, who has sent me very detailed tips and pointers, to the point that I couldn't incorporate all of them in one chapter. But, she keeps me on my toes and I hope that I can work as many of her tips into the storyline as I possibly can, since she has a very good point with most of them. Thank you so much for all the trouble you're taking with this.

For all of you who are reading this: please let me know what you think of the chapter and what you expect to happen in the next. I would like to know what your expectations are in respect to what will happen next, mainly to see if I did a good job at building up to the moment. Thank you in advance for any and all constructive criticism!

Now, without further ado, here is chapter 17, in which Hogwarts gets unexpected visitors and Hermione reveals more of herself to Lucius than she had intended….

Enjoy.

* * *

**To Save a Malfoy**

Ch. 17 Other people's frustrations

If anyone had been able to look into the room where Severus Snape and Lucius Malfoy stood at a couple of feet from each other, they might have thought the both of them had been the victim of an unfortunate freezing curse. There was no sound in the room save for the crackling of the fire, which sounded to Lucius Malfoy as the malicious cackling of evil little creatures, taking delight in his misery. Even though he prided himself on his self-control, he could do nothing but stare in horror and astonishment at the only person he never once doubted; the same person who had just shown him Voldemort's personal mark on his own body.

Suddenly, a memory of the first day at the Ministry came to mind. He once again heard the derisive laughing of his counterpart when Severus had come to his defence.

"That's what he meant…" he muttered, unaware that he spoke the words out loud.

"That is what who meant?" the Potions Master asked, unconsciously holding the pose he had been in for the past five minutes: his left arm outstretched towards Lucius, underside showing up, his right hand at his elbow, holding back the folds of fabric.

At the sound of Snape's voice, Lucius' head snapped up. The silver gaze directed at the dark-haired wizard, eyes narrowed, would quite possibly be enough cut to through solid steel. If it had not been for the fact that Severus Snape had extensive training in hiding his emotions in the most extreme of circumstances, he would have flinched visibly.

As it was, he let his arms slowly fall back to his sides, waiting for what his friend was going to do.

"I guess it really doesn't suit you, does it; pretending to be a good little wizard?" Lucius repeated the spiteful words his counterpart had spoken at the Ministry. Although they were said softly, they cut to the bone of the man whom they were addressed to.

"Lucius…" Snape started to say, his voice low in volume, but with a sharp edge to it. Regret? Hurt? Despair, maybe?

The blond wizard held up his hand, his face averted from his old friend.

"I'm sorry Snape…. I really can't deal with this now." His voice was breathless, filled with pain. And even though his stance could only be described as defensive, there was also clearly sorrow there, defeat even.

With those last words, Lucius turned and left the room, never looking back.

Severus Snape stood in the middle of the room, motionless; whether for several minutes or an hour, he could not tell. Anyone coming in to the room would have been surprised to see the maelstrom of emotions on his face….one might even have thought that his unreadable eyes had a suspicious sheen to them.

But no one entered the room to catch Hogwarts' Potions Master in his moment of vulnerability. The fates were once again cruel as they denied him comfort like so many times before. Not even Albus Dumbledore was aware of what was going on. So eventually the raven-haired man reached for the sleeve of his robes and pulled it down, his face as unreadable a mask as ever. Deftly, he redid the buttons, straightened his robes and without a second thought, swept out of the room.

* * *

The door had paint peeling off of it and was covered in filth to the extent that it was hardly distinguishable from the surrounding wall. The house in itself was completely unremarkable and it seemed as if people didn't even notice it when passing by, not even the wizards. 

Then again, it was not exactly a neighbourhood a respectable witch or wizard would want to linger.

The woman that stood on the front step of number 28 Moriarty Lane didn't seem bothered by her uninspiring surroundings, though. She knocked firmly on the door.

There were no sounds to be heard from inside the house and no light to be seen. Actually, it rather looked as if the house had been uninhabited for quite some time.

Nevertheless, the woman waited patiently for the door to open. After what seemed an eternity, it did. The large door, that despite its deprecating outward appearance, was quite sturdy, was opened a little bit, almost as if whoever was behind the door was expecting his visitor to enter the house by force if need be. Contrary to what one would expect, its hinges made no sound.

The woman waited patiently, looking into the shadows inside of the house, where she knew he was looking at her. She even imagined she could see the white of an eye in the dark recesses, but the interior of the house was so gloomy that she couldn't be sure.

"Maeve?" a rough, male voice finally asked, surprise and dismay evident in its tone, "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I have important news," the woman announced.

The eye, she was now sure she was actually seeing it, narrowed slightly, before the voice gruffly answered.

"I don't care. Go away and don't ever come back here again."

The door was moving in her direction and in a moment it would be closed again. The woman quickly placed her gloved hand against the filthy surface.

She said only one sentence, but she immediately felt that the force pushing the door in closed let up.

"He has returned home."

* * *

"Crooks, I swear to you, if you don't get off of me this instant, I'll give you to Professor Snape to use as potions ingredients," Hermione Granger grumbled barely intelligible to her familiar. The weight of the impertinent creature on her chest had woken her from her sleep. 

Without bothering to open her eyes, her arm came up to sweep him off the bed. However, when her hand connected to where she suspected her cat to be, she came into contact with something that felt decidedly unlike any cat she had ever seen and was covered in a soft fabric to boot. Instantly awake, Hermione's eyes shot open, to look right into the amused grey orbs of Draco Malfoy.

"Malfoy!" she all but shrieked, bolting upright and in the process nearly slamming her head into his if it hadn't been for his lightning fast reflexes.

"Merlin, Granger, mind my face, will you?" he drawled amusedly. It did little to improve Hermione's mood.

"What the hell are you doing in my bedroom in the middle of the night!" she demanded.

"It is hardly the middle of the night," the Slytherin admonished her, "it will be seven soon."

Draco had learned, the hard way, not to get on her bad side early in the day. Hermione was hardly what one would call a morning person. However, that didn't automatically entail that he could keep himself from teasing her. The young Gryffindor woman saw little lights twinkling in his eyes and his mouth was quirked upward in the trademark Malfoy smirk.

"Not amusing!" she bristled, while forcibly throwing her comforter in the general direction of the foot of the bed, not caring in the least whether or not she half buried him in it while doing so.

She swung her legs to the side and scooted to the edge of the bed in a huff.

"Is there an actual reason for you to be dragging me from my bed half an hour early, or were you just bored? For your information: I had a very long day yesterday!" she complained, while she slipped on some socks and pulled on her dressing gown.

Draco, the infuriating prat, just watched her stumble across the room to her bathroom, slamming the door shut behind her. After taking care of her most pressing early morning needs, she glanced at her own, tired face in the mirror. She was lucky Professor Snape had given her that headache potion, or she wouldn't have slept a wink…not to mention the fact that the regular potions _not_ brewed by Hogwarts' resident Potions Master would have caused her to walk around like a zombie for the first two hours of the day.

Unbidden, the images of the day before started to play in her mind's eye like a movie. Between the startling events at the Ministry and a surprise visit from Ginny, not to mention the jumble that was her emotions, she had been positively exhausted yesterday evening. She could think of nothing she wanted more than a quick shower, a dose of the headache relief potion and crawling into her bed to lose herself in blissful hours of sleep. Unfortunately for her, it was not meant to be…

_As she was saying goodbye to Ginny, finally having convinced the redhead that she wanted to go to sleep, she saw Draco Malfoy advancing on the two of them from the corner of her eye. She violently suppressed the urge to groan out loud at that unfortunate coincidence, which would probably keep her from much-needed sleep for some time longer. To her annoyance, she was proven right as the blond wizard addressed her._

"_Could I talk to you for a moment?" _

"_Good evening to you too, Malfoy," Ginny said sarcastically. Even though the Gryffindors and Draco had had a truce for years and some even called themselves his friends, it was no big secret that there was no love lost between the youngest Weasley and the Malfoy heir._

_The Slytherin didn't even deem her remark worthy of an answer, as all he did was sent her one of his famous glares. Knowing that the two, once they got started, would no doubt end up in a full-blown argument, Hermione was tempted for a moment to let them have a go at each other. Maybe, if Ginny got him riled up enough, he would not notice her slinking off to her chambers…_

_Knowing however, that Draco was not one to give up on something once he set his mind to it _and_ that she would only raise his suspicion if she tried so desperately to get out of this talk, she stepped in before the situation could get out of hand._

"_What can I do for you?" Even she could hear it came out much too cheerful. The Slytherin narrowed his eyes at her for a moment, before replying: "I need to talk to you." He glanced in the direction of Ginny, who was watching the proceedings with ill-disguised interest. "Privately," he added. _

_Hermione felt like an insect under a microscope under his penetrating silver gaze. Looking down at the books she had taken from the library, she started fidgeting with the little pieces of parchment she had used as bookmarks._

"_Draco, could we do this some other time? I am really tired…" she pleaded. Looking back up at him, she could see he was still studying her intently and if his suspicious gaze was anything to go by, he didn't like what he was seeing._

"_It's important," he said curtly, his voice leaving no room for argument._

_Hermione sighed. Apparently she was going to have to postpone that nice shower until Draco had had his chat with her. She couldn't say she was exactly looking forward to that talk, but she supposed she was going to have to get it over with some time._

"_Fine," she replied, her tiredness colouring her voice. "Come with me then," she turned and resumed walking in the direction of her rooms._

"_Bye Ginny," she called over her shoulder, "I'll see you later, okay?"_

_A couple of minutes later, Hermione closed the door to her rooms after Draco had entered. She walked over to her desk, where she let the books she'd been carrying fall onto the surface with unnecessary violence. Unfortunately the effect was rather ruined by the fact that due to her headache, she was more bothered by the racket than her unwelcome guest was._

_Deciding to face the music head-on, she turned round to face him in a show of bravado and carelessness she did not even remotely feel. _

"_So what is it that is so terribly important?" she demanded._

_Draco elegantly took a seat in one of the chairs facing the fireplace._

"_I want to know what precisely is going on between you and my father."_

"_You… What?" Hermione spluttered, taken completely by surprise by this bold question. Slytherins were not exactly known for their straightforward approaches to any matter of importance, so either he wanted to shock her into answering, or Ron and Harry were seriously rubbing off on him._

"_What in Circe's name do you mean: what precisely is going on between me and your father?"_

_Draco eyed her coolly._

"_What happened last night?"_

"_Last night?" Hermione repeated, a feeling of dread filling her. Snape must have told him about the kiss. _

"_Yes, last night," Draco said impatiently, narrowing his eyes at her again. "You looked rather upset when you rushed past us and father was quite distracted when we entered the room. Furthermore it seemed as if Professor Snape was mad for something or other. And the two of you have been behaving strangely when you're around each other ever since. So I want to know, what happened between the two of you?"_

Hermione splashed some cold water onto her face, in the hopes of getting her brain to wake up. Last night's was not a conversation she had any particular desire to repeat any time soon.

"_I don't know what you are talking about," Hermione said, fumbling with the hem of the t-shirt she was wearing underneath her robes. She walked over to the fireplace and started to fill the kettle for making tea._

_There was a rustle of clothes behind her: a hand grabbed her upper arm and she was turned around to face the liquid fire in Draco's eyes._

"_You must be the most appalling liar I've ever come across. Don't lie to me Hermione," he said in a dangerously low voice._

_She was startled at how fast this discussion was getting out of hand. Obviously, Draco had come to care even more about Lucius than she had already suspected. She only wanted to prevent him from finding out she had kissed his father. Nevertheless, the Gryffindor girl felt anger start to rise in her chest at his aggressive treatment of her. She fiercely pulled her arm from his grasp._

"_Nothing happened that I could want or need to share with you," she informed him, fire in her eyes. "You are going to have to be satisfied with that."_

"_It's my father we're talking about here, so I think that gives me every right to know what happened," Draco argued._

"_Draco, in case you hadn't noticed: it's been a long day for me today. It was a long day yesterday, I'm grumpy, I'm exhausted, I have the mother of all headaches and I _really_ don't want to discuss this with you now."_

"_Fine, I'll leave you to your own company then. Maybe you can try and make up a plausible story of what happened yesterday, since your arguments so far are singularly unimpressive."_

_Hermione quietly counted to ten, reminding herself that he was only concerned for Lucius, that this was over-protectiveness, nothing more nothing less._

_She tiredly rubbed her eyes for a moment, before looking back up at him._

"_I know you are concerned for your father, Draco," she said in a soft voice. "And I understand that. He has been through a lot and we still need to clear his name. So it is only natural for you to want to protect him. But I can assure you, that I would never consciously do something that would hurt Lucius. We simply had a…small conflict last night and I am sure that, given time, the air will be cleared and all will be well again."_

_She didn't know how she could say that last part with so much conviction in her voice, since she wasn't so sure yet that everything would be all right. The only thing she knew for certain was that she would do anything in her power to make sure that everything would be all right for Lucius._

_Apparently that much was clearly visible to Draco, who after a moment's hesitation nodded in acceptance._

"_Thank you for clearing that up… and I apologize for coming down on you so hard," he said, "It's just that I am…"_

"_Worried about him, yes I know," Hermione finished his sentence for him._

"_I know the two of you have spent many hours in each other's company," he said calmly. "And I have seen in the way you interact with him that you truly care about him. I shouldn't have doubted you so rashly."_

_Hermione felt her stomach churn with guilt at this unexpected declaration of trust by the Slytherin. She smiled wanly at him._

"_If you don't mind, I have a rendezvous with a headache-relief potion," she said in a feeble attempt to lighten the mood. Besides, if Draco would stay any longer, she was sure she would crack and confess everything that had happened._

_Draco gave her a quick hug._

"_Don't let me keep you." _

_He turned away from her and headed for the door. With his hand on the doorknob, he turned back._

"_Hey Granger!"_

_Hermione interrupted her fascinating study of her own hands to look up at him._

"_Yes?"_

"_Thank you for what you did at the Ministry today," the blond wizard said softly, "you were brilliant." _

_Hermione smiled, although she felt more like crying._

"_You're welcome."_

_Finally, the door closed behind him._

She re-emerged from the bathroom, combing her hair with her fingers, in an attempt to give it some semblance of order.

"So tell me, what are you doing here, you prat?" she growled at him.

"My, my, not a morning person, are you, bookworm?" the Slytherin goaded her.

"Ferret-boy I'm warning you…" Hermione threatened.

Sensing that she was well and truly approaching the end of her patience, Draco sobered.

"Professor Snape told me to get you down to the Great Hall as soon as possible…"

"What? Why?" Hermione interrupted him, not giving him the chance to finish his sentence.

Draco rolled his eyes at her impatience, but his face turned serious again very soon.

"The ministry is expected to arrive here shortly."

"The ministry?" Hermione questioned, surprised. Then her face turned dark. "What have they come up with this time?"

"I don't know, but I'm sure we're not helping by staying here."

Hermione sent her fair-haired friend another glare, but nevertheless disappeared into the bathroom again. She quickly cast a cleaning charm, and grabbed a sophisticated, grey knee-length skirt. Putting it on quickly, she picked out a pair of sheer nylons and an elegant pair of shoes with a little heel. She had a feeling she was going to need feeling good about herself in every way possible today. With the feminine, Gryffindor red blouse she planned on wearing still in her hand, she exited the bathroom again. Draco had seated himself on her bed, facing the bathroom door.

"Finally," he muttered, seemingly not very impressed with her half-dressed state. Hermione had little qualms with being in her underwear in the company of others. Staying at Grimmauld place meant being in close quarters most of the time and if nobody was allowed to see her in her underwear, things would have gotten quite difficult. Besides, Draco had never given her any reason to distrust him.

"You sure you want to go with the Gryffindor colour scheme today?" he asked, sceptically eyeing the satin blouse.

Hermione looked down at herself, while she put her arm in one of the sleeves.

"I'm wearing a grey skirt, which with a little imagination could pass for a Slytherin colour," she corrected him, on her way to the door.

"Hermione, you might want to…" Draco started to say.

The Gryffindor glanced over her shoulder at him, while she walked into her living room, her hands busy with pulling her hair out of the blouse. A movement from the corner of her eye caught her attention. Even when she hadn't seen who her other visitor was yet, a feeling of dread formed at the pit of her stomach.

And sure enough, a split second later she watched as Lucius Malfoy got up from the seat he had been occupying. She felt the blood rush to her cheeks in utter embarrassment and for a moment she froze. Had she known what a pretty picture she made, with the burgundy coloured blouse still open far enough to allow a glimpse of her cream-coloured lace bra, her curls flowing freely over her shoulders and an adorable blush on her cheeks, she might have felt a little better. As it was she blanked out completely for a couple of moments.

Soon, however, she regained the ability to speak.

"Draco Lucius Xavier Malfoy!" she shrieked, turning back to her former classmate. Draco was leaning against the doorpost, his famous smirk firmly in place.

"Thank you ever so much for warning me!" she said sarcastically, while her hands worked feverishly on doing up the buttons on her blouse.

The prince of Slytherin held up his hands in mock defence. "Hey, I tried to warn you, but you stormed right in there before I even had the chance!"

"Well, yes… _you_ are the one who came dragging me out of bed and telling me to hurry!" she retorted, the fire being replaced by a tone of voice that was dangerously close to sulking. Having finished with the blouse she pulled up an eyebrow at Draco in question. He nodded curtly, indicating her state of dress was once again impeccable. Taking a deep breath, she turned around to face Lucius. He was wearing deep grey trousers and a vest, with just a hint of a pristine white shirt showing at his neck. Complementing the outfit was a voluminous robe of the deepest burgundy, with a silver clasp at the neck, shaped like a phoenix feather. Hermione knew it to be one of Draco's favourites; she had seen him wear it on numerous occasions. Lucius looked better than he had at their last encounter, the emotions in his eyes calmer and more subdued. And there was this most alluring faint pink tinge to his cheeks

"Good morning Lucius," she said composedly. After a moment's hesitation, she looked up to him. As soon as their eyes met, she felt another furious blush rising up to her cheeks.

"I'm…eh…sorry about that," she mumbled, gesturing vaguely at her blouse.

To her surprise, Lucius smirked in a way that screamed 'evil Slytherin', his eyes gleaming mischievously. Her eyes widened a bit.

"I guess turnabout is fair play, Miss Granger," he commented airily.

Behind her, she could hear Draco snort. She whirled around to shoot him another glare. "Malfoy, I'm warning you….!" She threatened.

Her childhood nemesis looked past her at his father and remarked casually. "At least she's dropped the use of my middle names. That's a really bad sign…"

As if by silent agreement, they moved towards the door. "I'm glad she doesn't know my middle names then," commented the older Malfoy, his voice serious enough to prevent her from determining whether or not he was joking.

Hermione glanced sideways at the tall blond wizard and gave him a warning look.

"Are you sure about that…Lucius Alexander Tristan?"

"Damn!" cursed Lucius as he looked at her dramatically, with eyes wide in fear and a hand against pressed his heart.

"Told you she was scary," mumbled Draco.

Hermione burst out laughing at this comment that Ron made numerous times over the years. She gave the younger Slytherin a friendly push.

"Shut up, you prat!"

After walking for a couple of minutes with no sounds but the susurration of their robes, Hermione turned to Draco again.

"So Professor Snape didn't say anything about why the Ministry is coming?" she asked. Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw Lucius start slightly at the mention of his friend's name.

"I already told you, I don't know," Draco said impatiently, rolling his eyes at her.

"Oh, right. Sorry," she mumbled.

She snuck a glance at the older Malfoy. He appeared to be in thought, and didn't notice that she was watching him. Judging from the expression on his face, he was not having pleasant thoughts.

"Did you talk to him, last night?" she asked softly.

Lucius was startled out of his reverie. When he turned to face her, regret seemed to flit in his eyes, before he carefully schooled his expression into something more neutral.

"I went to his private quarters, but when I knocked on the door, there was no reply," he answered quietly.

Hermione gave him a sympathetic glance and put her hand on his arm, giving it a soft squeeze. A corner of his mouth twitched up briefly, as if he tried to smile at her, but couldn't quite bring himself to do it.

"I'm sure it will be fine, Lucius," she tried to convince him.

"What will be fine?" Draco wanted to know.

As Hermione turned to see him eye her questioningly, her mind once again wandered back to the night before…

"_Thank God," she murmured to herself as soon as the door fell closed behind Draco. She felt horrible for more or less lying to him and was actually rather surprised that he hadn't picked up on the fact that she'd been less than forthcoming. The headache that had been plaguing her ever since she came back from the ministry was anything but diminishing, so she went to the bathroom with the intention of solving that problem and quick. With barely controlled haste, she yanked open the small potion's cabinet next to the tub and grabbed her bottle of headache relief…. Only to find it empty._

_With a cry of frustration she left the empty vial on the edge of the tub and stomped back to the living room. Ten minutes later found her rummaging through Poppy's potions cabinet in the infirmary, looking for the wonderful dark-blue potion that would make the pounding in her temples disappear and allow for a night of peaceful slumber._

_Only after she had searched the entire cabinet twice, and in vain, did she remember that she herself had asked professor Snape to brew some more. She had found out a couple of days ago the Healers had apparently neglected to keep an eye on their stock. Groaning in frustration she let her forehead rest against the cool wall next to the cabinet. She could either try and brew some herself or go and ask professor Snape if he had headache relief in stock. The potion wasn't all that difficult to brew, but at the moment she felt rather unfit to perform the simple task…. To be completely honest, all she wanted to do now was crawl into bed and don't come out for at least a week. She didn't even feel up to the task of flooing the Potions Master. Didn't she keep some Muggle aspirin somewhere?_

_She pushed herself off of the wall and turned around to leave. At the sight before her, she let out an involuntary shriek._

"_I didn't mean to startle you," said Lucius Malfoy, looking rather startled himself. In spite of her headache, the young woman noted that he looked tired and pale, yet at the same time there was some emotion burning in his eyes._

_Hermione held a hand over her fast-beating heart and shook her head. "It is quite all right. I just didn't expect anyone else to be here," she said quickly._

_She peered up at him from under her eyelashes._

"_Were you looking for me?" she asked._

_Lucius looked a little uncomfortable._

"_I suppose I was, yes," he confirmed. Hermione looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to continue._

_Lucius cleared his throat, swallowed nervously then cleared his throat again._

"_I don't think I have properly thanked you yet for what you did at the Ministry today," he said._

_Hermione felt strangely disappointed. Of course she was glad he was grateful to her, but she had been hoping that what he wanted to discuss would be a little more personal._

"_You are welcome, Lucius," she said quietly. At the sound of his given name, he seemed to relax a little._

"_I assume we are back to first names then?" he asked._

"_I suppose so," replied Hermione, wondering where this conversation was leading._

"_Good," said Lucius. He nodded, looking deeply in thought and walked a few paces to his right. He turned and walked back. "Good," he repeated as he was once again standing in front of her._

_They stood staring at each other for a couple of moments. Hermione couldn't seem to break away from the light grey eyes that once again held the spark of warmth she loved so much. After a little while she looked down at her clasped hands._

"_If that is all, I am going to leave now, if you don't mind. I'm a bit tired," she announced._

_Lucius hesitated only for a moment, before he held up a hand._

"_There is something else I would like to discuss, if that is all right with you." The look in his eyes was rather pleading and she now also saw that the emotion she had seen in his eyes earlier seemed to be resurfacing. He looked…agitated._

_What would it be this time? Was he worrying about Narcissa again? Or maybe Draco? Or would he be afraid that by tomorrow Fudge and that piece of slime Gibson would have come up with another reason to try and incarcerate him? She didn't feel up to discussing anything of the kind, but as usual, she couldn't resist the look in those silver eyes._

'_Hermione Granger, you're a wimp,' she scolded herself as she sank down on one of the beds in the infirmary._

"_What's on your mind?" _

"_I just had a…lively discussion with Snape," Lucius stated. Hermione pulled up her eyebrows at that. She supposed that 'lively' roughly translated as 'we were both thoroughly pissed off". Having been on the receiving end of the potions professor's scathing comments for more times then she cared to count, she started to suspect that Professor Snape might have said something that he did not mean. She knew the man well enough to know that sometimes he did that. Lucius' calling his old friend 'Snape' instead of 'Severus' pointed to something of the sort as well._

"_I was frustrated with the fact that I can't do anything to help my own case. Everybody is doing their utmost to get things cleared up and all I can do is sit at the meeting, listening to other people deciding my fate and get anxiety attacks."_

_Hermione opened her mouth to comment on that, but a raised hand stopped her short before she had even started._

"_Things heated up and it ended with him showing me…" Lucius tale halted and he sat down abruptly on the bed next to the one she was sitting on. The blond wizard looked really miserable and Hermione felt a dreadful suspicion that she knew exactly what the professor had shown his old friend._

_Her heart ached for the both of them. Having worked closely together with the dark-haired potions genius, she knew better than most how much it had bothered him at times, that people seemed unable and unwilling to look past the mistake he had made when he was young. And foolish, to quote the man himself on the subject._

_And she felt sorry for Lucius too, because in his eyes she could clearly see that he felt betrayed. She could only guess what had transpired between the two men, before Lucius had come to see her._

_Apparently the look of understanding and pity on her face was enough for Lucius to discover another startling fact._

"_You know," he whispered, incredulity tingeing his voice._

"_Yes," she said simply. There was after all no point in denying it._

"_Why didn't you tell me?" _

"_Because it wasn't my story to tell."_

"_So you let me pick up my friendship with this…this…snivelling servant of the Dark Lord?" he exclaimed furiously, "How is…" _

_Hermione saw the hurt and betrayal once again come to the surface in his eyes, but his face was very white and very carefully wiped of all emotion. She didn't let him finish his sentence as she felt a wave of anger on behalf of professor Snape surge up in her own chest. This was the sort of situation that led a younger Hermione Granger to pick up the banner for House Elf rights and even though Professor Snape was by no means incapable of defending himself, she felt just as strongly about people treating _him_ unfairly._

"_You have no right to speak about Professor Snape that way," she told Lucius curtly, her eyes all but shooting sparks at him, effectively ensuring his silence. Probably only for the added benefit of being able to glare down at him, she got up from the bed without even realizing it._

_She could see his jaw muscles clench, his eyes blazing in anger, but he did not speak._

"_I gather from your story that you did not give him a chance to explain his actions to you," she said in a rather cool tone of voice. Lucius did not reply, but the silver eyes that were unwaveringly fixed on her, told her she had his full attention._

"_I am very sorry that you didn't do that, for if you had, you would have known by now that the obvious explanation is also a false one." She was stressing certain points in her story by furious hand gestures._

"_Then why don't you explain to me what is the right explanation," Lucius said tersely._

_Hermione shook her head determinedly. "I will do no such thing. And I sincerely hope that nobody else will either. The story is professor Snape's to tell and his alone. I suggest that if you really want to know what happened, you go and ask _him_." _

_She could see the frustration and anger hadn't subsided by far and the fact that she was unwilling to discuss it with him only added insult to injury of course. In spite of her annoyance with Lucius for not giving his old friend the benefit of the doubt, she could not help but take pity on him. With a sigh, she sat down next to him._

"_I can see that this bothers you greatly, but I assure you that once you know the whole story, you will feel a whole lot better."_

"_Please go and see professor Snape," she pleaded, "Tonight, if you will. Unless I am very much mistaken he feels just as bad as you do about this whole situation, if not worse. He is unfortunately rather used to the reaction he got from you this evening and I daresay that he was hoping his old friend would give him the benefit of the doubt… a chance to explain before condemning him."_

_This finally seemed to break through Lucius' defences. He closed his eyes briefly and his shoulders slumped a little in defeat. Then he nodded._

"_I think I will do that," he said softly, as he got up._

_Hermione got up as well and gave him a brief hug. "Be sure to hear him out before you judge him, Lucius," she said, "and if you can…don't judge him at all. Merlin knows he does not deserve it." _

_There was sincerity in Lucius' gaze as he nodded and Hermione thought a little guilt as well. That pleased her, since it would eventually make things easier for Professor Snape. She was convinced the two men would be able to set things straight_

_As Lucius left the infirmary, Hermione sat back down on the bed. Sweet Merlin what an exhausting day! With a sigh she let herself fall onto the plump pillow and closed her eyes. She pulled her legs up and wrapped them in her robes. As she pushed her pounding temple into the cool pillow, she thought back at the events of the day…. Remembering the uneasy talk she had had with Lucius after breakfast that morning, the happenings at the ministry… the library, Ginny, her talk with Draco… Lucius again… Moaning, she buried her head deeper into the pillow. _

"_If I never have to live through a day like this again, it will be too soon!"_

_Then, all of a sudden, there was a sudden weight on the mattress next to her and someone softly trailed a finger along her cheek. Hermione was rather surprised that Ron or Harry was capable of such a tender gesture; normally they were more the awkward-pat-on-the-back types._

_Imagine her surprise when she opened her eyes to find Severus Snape sitting on the edge of her bed, voluminous black robes draped around him. His intense obsidian eyes were fixed on her with an expression she couldn't decipher. She wanted to say something, anything, but found that she could not get the words to leave her lips. She had never seen the potions master looking like this. Even though his face was still rather blank, his eyes were anything but. For the first time in a long, long time his defences seemed to be down completely, his eyes as unguarded as those of a young child. _

"_I didn't mean to eavesdrop…" he said, his silky voice sounding more like raw silk today. "Lucius didn't see me…I cast a Disillusionment Charm…Draco told me you were in need of a good headache relief potion…I…" he faltered for a moment. Hermione blinked in surprise. Professor Severus Snape, feared Potions Master of Hogwarts' School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the very man who could reduce grown-ups to blubbering incoherency by force of his biting sarcasm alone appeared to be at a total loss for words._

_After staring at her more intensely than he ever had in class, for what felt like hours, he finally managed a shaky:_

"_Thank you." _

_Somehow, the quiet words, spoken with such sincerity, were her undoing. Especially coming from this man. She had borne the awkward tension between her and Lucius as best she could, she had tried and succeeded in meeting everybody's expectations at the Ministry, she managed to sooth both Harry and Ron's worries and Draco's suspicions but this heartfelt thanks from her normally stoic professor, while he was looking at her with such openness, caused her self-control to finally crumble._

"_Oh, Professor, I'm so sorry!" she said as she raised herself to a sitting position. She flung her arms around his neck and started sobbing._

_The raven-haired wizard looked down at the young woman in bewilderment. For a moment he absolutely froze. Then, slowly and awkwardly, he put his arms around her, enveloping her in his robes in the process. And while Hermione Granger cried for the Potions teacher and his friend and for herself Severus Snape just sat there, looking shocked, but also strangely pleased at the fact that someone had come to _him_ for comfort._

"Professor Snape and I had a…difference of opinion," Lucius diplomatically answered his son's question, jerking Hermione from her thoughts.

Draco's eyes narrowed slightly; it was obvious that he knew there was more to it than a mere difference of opinion. He nodded however and let the subject drop.

Meanwhile, they had arrived at the double doors leading to the Great Hall. As they entered, they saw that Professor Dumbledore was already sitting at the High table, talking quietly to Professor Snape. Harry and Ron sat to his left, looking none-too happy about the early wake-up call. Harry had one elbow resting on the table, with his hand at his temple and was staring moodily at his cup of coffee. Ron had shoved his plate to the side, so he could place his arms on the table and use them as a pillow for his head. He appeared to be sleeping.

"Did you wake them too?" Hermione asked Draco.

Before he had the chance to speak, the young witch already knew the answer from the smirk forming on his face and the devilish gleam in his eyes. "Hell yes!"

Their little exchange caught the attention of the Headmaster and the Potions Master and both looked up at the new arrivals. As soon as the black-haired professor locked stares with the older Malfoy, his eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly and Hermione could almost see him retreating back into himself. Without saying a word, he got up from his seat.


	18. The Ministry investigation

**Disclaimer**: who needs money when you can have reviews? ;-) Well…al right, a little extra money would come in handy right about now. But I'll find another way of earning it, okay?

**AN**: The university year is drawing to a close, which means I am simultaneously busier than before and have more need for relaxation than before. The first prohibits me from writing, the second urges me to. Seeing that I am slightly faster than the last time in updating, I hope the trend will continue like this and you will enjoy speedier updates for the time being.

I once again like to thank each and every one of you so very much. If I were writing this story solely for my own pleasure, I would have abandoned it a very long time ago. The fact that there are people out there who love to read this keeps me going like nothing else would. Alrightie then….on to the personal thank you's….

**Chantal J**: well…it's not really 'soon' is it? but I did go from updating every six weeks to five weeks… I suppose that's progress ;-) thank you for reviewing!

**Corri**: I think we're updating on the same day again! Yay for us! I really love your story 'Sailing from Neverland' Great story, everyone! I'm glad you think that both Lucius' and Snape's reactions were inside the realm of possibilities. As for your questions…Maeve? Wait and see! Ministry visit? Erm…next chapter, probably. Draco? Ask Trelawney…I don't foresee the future that well ;-) thank you so much.

**BabyRuth15**: your taste in men for Hermione (or in general) is very similar to mine! But as I declared before, this is going to be an HGLM. But you're right: Draco and Snape are totally hot too! ;-) thank you for reviewing.

**Shadowwarriors-angel**: that was a lovely review, as always. What a funny coincidence you experienced the scene I wrote out between Draco and Hermione :-) See, my fanfic is very realistic! It could happen to you! ;-) I love how everyone understands both Lucius and Snape, by the way. I think sometimes people hurt each other even if they don't want to. Snape and Lucius' predicament is a good example of that. Thanx for reviewing and if I ever visit Berlin, will you show me around too? ;-) I loved it when I went there for a week when I was…erm…16 I think.

**SeverusSnape'sLove**: I can't find fault with your choice of pairings. I am very glad my story is hooking you on HGLM. Check out the ones in my favourites: they're very good too! Thanks for reviewing.

**Michelline**: Yep, I had to do something to shake both Hermione and Lucius awake. And after all the angst there had to be some fluff, right? Don't worry about Luce and Sev: they'll start resolving their conflict this chapter! Thnx.

**SemiCharmed**: your comment had me thinking: I think you are so right. I do love Severus as a character and even if I am not planning on having him end up with the girl, I can't help but to write him some comfort, you know? ;-) I wrote a one-shot SSHG, you might like that one. And I am turning some idea's for SSHG over in my head. I had the most unbelieving offer from the Mad Madame to work on a plotline she has devised and it is utterly brilliant….and SSHG ;-) thnx for reviewing!

**Louisgoddes**: thank you! I LOVE hearing my story 'rocks'. grins > I am working very hard to insert some Hermione-Lucius interaction. Next chapter, probably.

**Queenanneus**: does happy dance, singing 'people are ADDICTED to MY story, YAY!'> sorry about that ;-) I hope you'll like the next chapter. Thanx.

**Jaid Ziaen**: hey I missed your reviews! You are always so delightfully vivacious. But really… 'the Goddess of Lightside Hermione /Lucius' I am going to be really bigheaded if you keep this up, you know? ;-) Thank you so much for the wonderful, wonderful review.

**Lady Norskstar**: I was rather smitten with the tender Severus I wrote, myself. I am so glad you liked it :-) There's some Lucius-Snape interaction in this chapter that has potential. Hope you like! Thanks for dropping me a line.

**CharmedLeoLvr**: I won't be mad for you not updating soon as long as you update soon? Erm…how is that supposed to reassure me? ;-) anyway, it really cannot be helped at the moment. Since I am not JK (see disclaimer) I do think it is wise to have an alternate career path ready for when I am all grown up ;-) I am glad you liked the Snape-Hermione moment and no, they won't turn into lovers or something like that. I am in control of their universe, after all ;-) I will see what I can do about the kiss in the next chapter. I am starting to crave some Hermione-Lucius moments as well :-) thank you.

**Mary**: rivalry between Lucius and Snape you ask? Not on a conscious level and not yet anyway. It might develop later on… thnx for reviewing.

(asterisk) : officially captivating? I like the sound of that :-) thank you.

**Shy-n-great**: wow, that is another lovely review! You praise me on so many points, I can't even begin to react to them all. Let it be known that I am very gratified by your wonderful commentary and sincerely hope you like this chapter as well. Thank you so much, dear sister :-)

**Katharina-B**: haha, just stay with me dear, I'll get you to like Hermione/Lucius yet! ;-) Seriously, I am pleased my story is interesting enough for you to keep reading, even if you don't really like the pairing. I hope I can convince you eventually it is worth your time. As for Hermione's 'bad day'…well you can't win all the time, now can you? Thank you.

**Jay**: okay..Jay: I love you! giggles> I do my best to keep the characters somewhat 'in character', it's lovely to hear you think they're all marvellous. Thank you for the wonderful compliment.

**Duchesscarml**: sorry for not making it very soon. Glad you like the chapter though. Have fun with the next one! Thanx.

**The mad Madame**: you manage to see more aspects to my story than I myself do, as usual. I am not sure if I am ever going to play the jealousy-card…the story has a sort of flow and I just go with it… I cannot always see what is around the next bend. Thank you for the thorough review and the compliments on the emotional groundwork.

**Ichigo**: about the Hermione-defending-Snape-scene… I wanted Snape to know that he is appreciated and someone just telling him that would probably be a) awkward and b) he'd have trouble believing them. That's why I came up with Snape overhearing the conversation, knowing that Hermione is unaware of his presence. I am glad you liked it. thank you.

**Jalen Strix**: that is so lovely! Thank you for the fact that reading my story makes your evening enjoyable. What more is there to wish for? Thank you for the compliments on my writing style too, by the way. Hope you enjoy this chapter as well.

**Epona Rosa**: haha. Well, I thought it was time to confront Lucius with the fact that Hermione is not JUST a medi-witch, lol. I hope this chapter is once again worth the wait, although I'd prefer if I were able to update more regularly. knuffel>

**Sunny moonlight**: yours is another one of those reviews that touches my heart and has me smiling like mad for a day or two ;-) Very well done with the reasoning on Snape's reaction. Read below how you did! ;-) And don't worry: Lucius will be one Snape's side soon too. Thank you for the lovely review.

**Atlas452**: I totally know what you mean…as I said before, I really like Snape, so I guess that always shows in my stories. I must admit I was starting to doubt the pairing for a moment too. But I might be starting another SSHG sometime soon and this has been an HGLM in my mind for too long for me to change it now ;-)

**Shadow-mai**: thank you for the fabulous compliment. check out my favourites: there are writers there who are much better than I am, really! Just don't forget to read my story too ;-)

**Faery**: funny that you should think Snape needed a hug. Funny in a good way, of course :-) I know Hermione and Lucius aren't getting any ground covered when it comes to further developing their relationship. I mean, they don't even know they're supposed to be in one, haha. I guess with all the things going on, it would disappear to the background. Am planning some serious HGLM interaction soon, though. Thank you so much.

**Guard-girl**: thank you for reviewing. I'm glad you like :-)

**Karms**: I agree. With the Lucius-character, part of the attraction is his self-control and seemingly cold behaviour. It gives him a hint of mystery and makes you want to find out what goes on behind the façade, doesn't it? I thought it would be a shame to rob him of all that if I tried to make a 'good man' out of him, lol. Thnx for reviewing.

**Zafaran**: you're guessing, like some others, what the artefact could be. Well, I have a little trick up my sleeve when it comes to that, so you are going to have to wait and see cackles evilly> You are right in one thing though, it's not his cane. Thank you for reviewing. (lovely nickname you have, btw. Sounds very mysterious and exotic to me.)

**Goodmorningstarshine**: erm…running out of original ways of saying thank you again…. I'll just be boring then: thank you so much for the lovely review and for liking the story. Sorry I didn't update sooner, but I hope you'll like this chapter just the same. And don't worry, I won't stop working on it... I absolutely love al the marvelous feedback I am getting :-)

**Porcelain87**: like you, I have trouble finding words to express how your review makes me feel. First off, yes I proofread my chapters a couple of times and try to eliminate as many spelling mistakes and too-complicated lines as possible. Thank you for noticing. Then the comments about my writing, the characters, the flashbacks…I cannot say how happy they make me. When I am writing I try to achieve certain things and a review like yours convinces me that I have succeeded in all of them. So thank you for making me very happy.

**Marshmallow**: oh dear Merlin, I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long… See the nice long chapter below to make it up to you? ;-) let me know what you think and thnx for reviewing!

**Amishgirl281**: so many questions! I am going to be really evil here and say: you'll have to read future chapters to find out! Very glad you think the story is brilliant. Hope you didn't think I stopped writing it or something. It's just really busy at the moment, but I'm not giving up. Anyhow, hope you like this chapter too. Thnx.

**3-legged-dog**: finally, the last reviewer! Don't get me wrong: I absolutely LOVE any and all reviews…but I run out of nice, original thank-you's about one-third of the way, while I think you ALL deserve a personalized thank you. I'd like to thank you for the lovely compliment that my story's been the first that prompted you to leave a review. I must warn you: FFN is thoroughly addicting ;-) As you might have read in the thank-you for Ichigo, you were absolutely right about the Hermione-defending-Snape thing and his feelings about that. Very well done. Well, I'd say enjoy yourself here on FFN, but I know you will. Thanks for the review.

Phew…that were all of them, I think. If I ever leave anyone out: I didn't do it on purpose and I really liked reading your review too!

That is one of the loveliest things: all those people from different places around the globe being united by a love of reading and writing stories about Harry Potter. I feel like I have so many friends here and I have all of you to thank for that.

Okay…the next chapter. The last two revolved about the characters' relationships with each other and laid some groundwork for future chapters. This chapter is where the action is starting up again. First of all, what is the Ministry up to? And of course, what will happen to Lucius and Snape? I'll keep you waiting no longer.

Below is chapter eighteen, in which Lucius is confronted with Snape in 'evil-Potions-Master-mode' and Narcissa has a proposition to make.

Enjoy

* * *

**To Save a Malfoy**

Ch 18. The Ministry investigation

Hermione felt her stomach clench in concern, as she watched the Potions Master whisper a few words to Albus Dumbledore. The Headmaster looked as if he was going to object, but the raven-haired wizard held up his hand before he could even open his mouth. The elderly wizard sighed and looked up at his Potions Professor with sad eyes and an expression that clearly said: 'are you sure you want to do this?'

Snape stared back at him for a couple of moments, not speaking, his countenance not revealing any emotions whatsoever. Hermione had a strong suspicion though, that Dumbledore knew what was going through his friend's mind anyway.

Then, the younger wizard stepped back and made his way around the High Table and stepped off the dais. His long black robes trailed behind him as he stalked towards the double doors with the combination of grace and power all his students knew so well. As he reached their group, he turned to Hermione, bid her good morning and inquired rather stiffly if the potion he had provided had been satisfactory. His tone of voice was neither angry nor sad…just too empty.

"I slept like a baby," Hermione hurried to reassure him. "At least until _someone_," she glared meaningfully at Draco, "decided I had slept long enough." Draco obliged by giving her a self-satisfied smirk. Snape nodded thoughtfully at that, apparently not even noticing their attempt to lighten the mood.

Hermione was starting to feel decidedly uncomfortable with the tension she could feel between the two older Slytherins. Even though Snape was hiding his emotions carefully, she could tell that he had by no means forgotten what had happened the night before. And seeing that he was probably unaware of Lucius' attempt to come and visit him, he might think his old friend wouldn't bother to look past the obvious, like so many people.

Lucius was likewise trying to hide his emotions and Draco's eyes flicked from one man to the other, clearly bothered by the state of affairs. Like his mentor and father he hid his emotions well, but the young Gryffindor knew him well enough to see he was concerned. She couldn't blame him.

"I'm afraid that would be my doing, Miss Granger," Snape continued their earlier conversation on wake-up calls. "I would be very much obliged, though, if I could have a moment of your time after breakfast?" His tone, though not unfriendly was clipped and entirely too lifeless.

"Of course," Hermione acquiesced, wondering what she was getting herself into.

"Good. I'll be in my office," he countered and his left hand took a hold of his robes in a gesture that meant he was about to sweep out of the room. The young Gryffindor was acutely aware of the fact that their little group was the centre of attention by now. Even Ron and Harry had awoken from their stupor and were watching the proceedings with interest. They both had a grudging respect for the Potions Master and even though they didn't know him very well, what they had seen of Lucius Malfoy, not to mention Hermione's favourable opinion of the man, had led them to like the older Malfoy too. Obviously, they had no idea what had happened the night before, but one didn't need to be a genius to pick up on the tension between the two. If nothing else, they had been in Snape's class long enough to know the signs that said the Professor was less than pleased.

The black-clad wizard nodded curtly at the blond youth standing next to Hermione.

"Draco."

After a moment's hesitation that lasted just long enough for the onlookers to start doubting if he was going to acknowledge Lucius at all, he nodded to the older Malfoy as well.

"Lucius."

Hermione had always known that Snape was a master with words. She had never met anyone who had such an astounding talent to use language as a weapon, to bend words in a way that he could make you feel whatever he wished. Not once, however had she witnessed that there were so many feelings expressed in merely one word. Not even when that word was uttered by Severus Snape.

It was an insult and a plea, accusing and lamenting, angry and hurt all at the same time. Even though it was not directed at her, Hermione felt a stab in the area of her heart and unconsciously brought up a hand to cover her chest. Snape's dark eyes were directed at Lucius and after a soulful look, he turned in a swirl of robes and before anyone was more or less clear on what had happened, had vanished from sight.

Looking after him in a daze, Hermione only became aware of her surroundings when Lucius put a hand on her shoulder. Simultaneously a large dark owl appeared through one of the owl-holes near the ceiling of the Great Hall and swept towards Dumbledore. The young witch ignored the happenings at the High Table for the time being and turned her gaze on Lucius.

"I must go talk to him," he told her urgently. "Explain things to the Headmaster, would you?"

"I don't think that will be necessary."

She glanced towards the High Table where Professor Dumbledore was gazing at Lucius, his blue eyes serious. The older Malfoy met his gaze for a moment, nodded and turned away, hurrying towards the double doors that Snape had just vanished through.

"Lucius!" Hermione called after him. As he turned back to her she said softly: "Good luck."

He nodded and in another moment, he too was gone.

"Care to explain what that was all about?" Draco queried while they resumed their course towards the High Table.

Hermione heaved a sigh. "Apparently your father and Professor Snape had a discussion last night and the professor showed Lucius his Dark Mark."

"It didn't go over well, I take it?" Harry asked.

The brown-haired witch looked up at her long-time friend and sighed.

"The usual reaction, I'm afraid." She pulled out a chair next to Harry and flopped down, Draco seating himself next to her.

"Lucius came to me last night, but I refused to tell him anything," she continued. At their surprised looks, she clarified: "It is not my place to explain things. If Lucius wants to know what happened, he's damn well going to have to ask Snape!"

Her statement was concluded in a rather vehement tone of voice and the three men found themselves nodding quickly in agreement, in spite of themselves. They didn't even dare comment on her uncharacteristic omission of Snape's honorary title, something she had berated Harry and Ron on for more times than either of them cared to count.

"So that's what he is doing now?" Ron asked.

"I guess so."

After that, neither of them spoke, as they were all submerged in their own thoughts on the matter. Mechanically, they started on their breakfast.

* * *

"Severus!" 

The Potions Master had almost reached his office in the dungeons when he heard someone call his name. He halted, the billowing robes swirling around his legs in response to the abrupt stop and turned on his heel to face the direction he had just come from.

Lucius was advancing on him with quick strides and within moments was standing next to him.

"What can I do for you?" asked the dark-haired wizard, frightfully composed.

"I need to talk to you, Severus," Lucius said as calmly as possible, which was rather an accomplishment since he was anything but calm.

Snape merely pulled up one black eyebrow in his signature manner.

"It's about our…conversation last night…" Malfoy continued.

The other man folded his fingers around the edges of his wide robes and folded his arms across his chest, effectively wrapping himself in their protective layers and looked at the blond expectantly. His face was still suspiciously devoid of emotions, his eyes black pools of shining obsidian, reflecting nothing but the outside world. Any of his students would have recognised this pose. It is the one the Potions Master used when he came across you in the halls after curfew. It clearly said 'I know you have been up to no good and I am going to nail you for it, so let's make this easier on both of us and confess what you did…don't make me get it from you the hard way'

Lucius was hardly a student, but apparently the Professor's body language worked nearly as well on him.

"Can't we at least go somewhere we can sit down?" Lucius asked, a barely audible mix of desperation and exasperation tingeing his voice.

Without saying anything, Snape resumed walking and left the other Slytherin little choice but to follow him. He halted in front of a large wooden door, which he opened with a few whispered words. Lucius was rather surprised to find himself back in his old Potions classroom. Almost automatically, he walked over to the third-row workbench on the right-hand side of the classroom. It was the one he used to occupy with Severus while they attended Hogwarts together.

Momentarily forgetting the purpose of their meeting here, he slipped into his old seat and looked around the room, a smile playing on his lips. He took in the Potions cabinet, which looked a lot tidier and more organised than he remembered. The stacks of cauldrons in the corner looked pretty much the same though, as did the wooden tables and chairs all around him.

As he took in the stone walls with the high-placed windows and the large black door leading to the storeroom, he could almost see Professor Fitzwizzle tottering into the classroom. Half-forgotten memories resurfaced and in his mind he heard a voice belonging to a young Severus Snape mercilessly criticising their Professor. '…he's supposed to warn us about the volatility of dragon's blood…I wonder who's in more need of tutoring; we or the Professor…he's going to blow us all up…how utterly depressing; we will not live to see next week and it's not because we were specifically targeted out of vengeance, blood thirst or some plot to rule Slytherin house, but because our _Professor_ – and I use that term loosely - combines an intelligence that is easily topped by that of the giant squid with the Potions knowledge and aptitude of the average mountain troll. If it didn't go against the nature of Slytherin House to commit oneself in any way, shape or form I'd swear the man couldn't tell a phoenix tail feather apart from his own quill…'

Needless to say that, during Potions, Lucius Malfoy and his friend Severus Snape were often 'otherwise occupied'. Sometimes they'd actually be working on Potions, with the dark-haired young wizard explaining something to his counterpart. Lucius was by no means deficient, but when it came to Potions, Snape was nothing short of brilliant; he picked things up at an incredible rate. Taking into account the fact that one could have more interesting conversations with a door than with their Potions Professor it was hardly surprising that on the relatively rare occasions that Lucius needed tutoring, he asked his friend.

Then of course, there were the lessons that were spent brewing in other senses of the word. The two Slytherins took delight in cooking up trouble by wreaking havoc with the Potions of the Gryffindors, especially Potter's clan. Out of them, only Lupin was smart enough to figure out what they did to the potion, but mostly not before it was too late to counter the effect. An effect that was usually glaringly obvious so that even Professor Fitzwizzle was alerted to the fact that the potion was brewed incorrectly. After all, it was fairly impossible to ignore a cauldron belching large clouds of sickly yellow-green fumes into the classroom. Again, Severus had been quite brilliant at that.

And sometimes they would just discuss whatever was on their mind. True to their Slytherin nature, they had devised a spell that allowed only the two of them to hear what they were talking about. Any eavesdroppers would not be able to hear much of what they were saying and would only pick up the occasional Quidditch-related term. It was a rather effective charm that allowed them to talk freely even in the midst of a House whose members were always on the lookout for a piece of blackmail-worthy intelligence.

Remembering something else, Lucius bent over the wooden table on impulse and examined it up close. And sure enough, near the edge of the table, he found what he was looking for. The figures of two small snakes were cut into the wood. One of them was plain dark green in colour, the other an impressive black with small silver markings. Swept up in an uncharacteristic bout of nostalgia, Lucius traced the contours of the green snake with his index finger, a gentle smile on his lips that would have shocked anyone who knew the Lucius of the past twenty years. The green snake had been Severus's and the black one was his.

He couldn't help but grin in delight, remembering how Severus and he had carved the snakes into the bench during one particularly boring lesson; they had even gone as far as to devise an enchantment to make them move. It was remarkable how inventive the two of them could be as long as it didn't have anything to do with the regular curriculum. After they had performed the incantation, the two snakes would wander about together, wiggling all over their table and playfully entwining their bodies. Obviously the spell had worn off years ago, but it nevertheless pleased Lucius that the carvings, a symbol of their friendship, were still there after all this time.

Automatically he turned to his right, to the seat his friend always occupied, his face still showing his amusement.

The chair was empty.

Lucius felt his smile falter as he turned to the front of the classroom, where the Potions Master was looking at him from his position against the teacher's desk, arms crossed over his chest. His face was impassive, his posture stern and forbidding. The dark eyes resembled nothing so much as polished onyx; black, shining and not a hint of what was going on beneath the surface.

So many things had happened… While the Potions classroom was nothing but a trip down memory lane for him, this had been Severus' classroom for the past…how many years? Looking at the man who was standing so far away from him near the blackboard, Lucius saw a teacher, a Hogwarts Professor. Severus Snape, the man that had been his friend unconditionally from the moment he had found himself back at Hogwarts, was virtually impossible to discern behind the façade of black robes and unreadable eyes.

Sitting there, feeling the physical as well as the emotional distance to the Potions Master, Lucius suddenly realised how little he knew of the life his friend had lead. His friend hardly discussed anything about his private life and he himself had been too wrapped up in his own worries to notice and inquire about Severus's. Lucius felt the feeling of guilt that had churned in his stomach since his discussion with Miss Granger deepen. Severus had been his friend unconditionally, no questions asked and he didn't know the first thing about the saturnine Professor. Intending to solve this problem if only he got the chance, he asked the first question that came to mind

"Do you like teaching?"

For a moment, Snape seemed surprised by that question; he returned quickly to his former, emotionless behaviour though.

"It's a job, I suppose," he shrugged.

"Severus…" said Lucius, getting up from his seat and starting to walk towards the front of the room. "Tell me what happened to you." His voice was soft now.

Snape stared at him hard for several long moments, before letting out an audible breath.

"When?" he asked tiredly.

Lucius, who had halted when he was level with the front row and had been leaning sideways against the foremost workbench, took another step forward.

"After I…disappeared."

Snape pinched the bridge of his nose, his eyes closed.

"What do you want to know?"

Lucius mimicked the Professor's pose, leaning back against the front row table. He set his hands down onto the surface on either side of him, his fingers curling around the rough wood. There was only one question on his mind. The only one that mattered.

"Why did you join the Dark Lord?"

At the sound of that question, Snape let go of his nose, his hand slowly sinking back to his side, while his head came up to look Lucius straight in the eye. When he answered, his voice was rougher than Lucius had ever heard it before and there was a tone of raw honesty to it that chafed at his chest.

"I was tired of being alone."

* * *

At exactly eight the double doors to the Great Hall swung open once again, to admit Minister Fudge, Mr. Gibson, two more men in robes that proved them to be Ministry employees, four Aurors and a small army of clerks. 

At the High Table, Albus Dumbledore slowly got up from his seat and smiled congenially at the new arrivals.

"Cornelius, Mr Gibson, what an unexpected pleasure. Would you care to join us for breakfast?"

"Albus I'm afraid we are here on important business," said Fudge rather pompously, while advancing on Hogwarts' Headmaster.

"Ah yes, so I gathered from the owl you were so gracious as to send me ten minutes before you arrived," replied Dumbledore, still smiling, "but surely a cup of coffee would not go amiss?"

Before Fudge could decline his offer again the aged wizard redirected his look towards the twelve men standing behind the Minister and his right hand man and smiled amiably.

"Seeing the early hour of your arrival you have not yet had breakfast, I assume?" Some of the clerks shuffled their feet, validating the assumption. They were the youngest of the company and looked pale and sleepy. One of them tried to hide a yawn by studying the front of his robes, while another appeared to be sleeping where she stood.

It was hardly surprising that Dumbledore noticed, his blue eyes twinkling merrily.

"It would be truly ungracious to not extend the famous hospitality of Hogwarts to you, especially because of the important task you have before you," he commented warmly and clapped his hands twice.

As if the house elves in the kitchen were waiting for just that signal, one end of the Ravenclaw table was set for twelve persons within seconds, with all the wonderful food that breakfast at Hogwarts could boast on.

By now, not only the clerks were reminded of their early wake-up call. The two ministry employees were eyeing the food hungrily and Hermione caught at least two of the Aurors sneaking glances at the wafting stack of pancakes and pile of freshly-baked muffins at the centre of the table.

Having no choice but to admit defeat, Fudge waved his hand vaguely in the direction of the table, thereby giving permission for his little army to sit down and feed themselves. They did so with more speed than one would have thought them capable of just now and happily dug in.

"Splendid, splendid!" said the Headmaster enthusiastically. He motioned for Fudge and Gibson to step up to the High Table.

"Come and sit with me, while you explain what it is exactly that I can do for you…ah yes, Mr Potter, Mr Weasley and Miss Granger: you don't mind if the Minister and Mr Gibson take your seats, do you?"

Perplexed, the Gryffindor trio got up.

"Wonderful!" At another clap from his hands, the used plates disappeared to be replaced by clean ones and the elderly wizard had Cornelius Fudge and Mr Gibson sitting down with a cup of coffee, before either of them knew what hit them.

"The boy needs to go too," said Gibson, regaining some of his composure, "we wouldn't want him to do something…regrettable, now would we?" The look he was giving a certain blond wizard was beyond suspicious.

"I am sure we need not worry about that," commented Dumbledore calmly, quickly softening the feelings of indignation that were starting to burn on behalf of Draco.

"However, seeing that the appearance of impropriety could indeed arise, I think your suggestion is sensible; Mr Malfoy, would you excuse us?" The blue eyes that looked at Draco Malfoy over the rim of half-moon spectacles held a subtle warning, despite their kindness.

"Of course, Professor Dumbledore," the Malfoy heir returned politely and he got up from his chair as well.

The four of them had stepped down and were making their way across the Great Hall towards the doors through which both Lucius and the Potions Master had left so dramatically earlier, when the Headmaster's voice halted them in their tracks.

"Oh and Miss Granger? Don't forget to update all the patient files with the information you found. Maybe you should create references, it is important to organize you know. You could enlist the help of Professor Snape again, like you did last time."

Hermione, who had turned back at the sound of her name, suppressed the urge to frown. What was the Headmaster on about? Organizing? She hardly knew anyone who seemed more disorganized than the man himself. Whenever she visited his office, she had to forcefully restrain herself in order not to jump up and start rearranging his impressive collection of books; they were haphazardly piled onto the shelves all around the room, not sorted according to subject, author or even colour or size. And that was not even mentioning the piles of paper that always seemed to be cluttering his desk, in between the magical trinkets he enjoyed so much.

Nevertheless, she nodded and found herself repeating Draco's earlier statement: "Of course, Professor Dumbledore."

By the time they had reached the doors, they could just overhear Fudge asking where Lucius was and Dumbledore responding: "Lucius? I haven't seen him this morning. I suppose he's having a lie in. Orders from Miss Granger; he's not yet fully recovered, you know…"

The doors swung closed silently.

"What the bloody hell was that all about?" asked Ron succinctly.

"Be damned if I know," muttered Harry. He gave Hermione a suspicious look. "Why was he ordering you to update the patient files?"

"I have no idea," confessed Hermione. "He normally never interferes with that." She looked pensive.

"Well, he must have meant _something_," said Ron.

Hermione nodded, absentmindedly tapping her finger against her bottom lip. She was sure there was some hidden meaning behind the old wizard's words, if only she could figure out what.

"I wonder why he mentioned Professor Snape," Draco put in his Sickle's worth, unwittingly providing Hermione with the solution to the problem.

"Of course!" she exclaimed, before storming off down the corridor.

The three young men looked at each other with long-suffering expressions on their faces.

"I hate it when she does that," said Harry, the other two agreeing before the three of them set off after her.

* * *

Narcissa Malfoy looked gorgeous. She knew, because she had checked herself in the mirror. The form-fitting cobalt-blue robes might have been too daring on any other witch her age, but with her pale skin tone and the blond hair, she could pull it off. Especially with her hair done up elegantly, the way it was now. 

The V-neckline of the robes showed a tasteful amount of cleavage and the only pieces of jewellery she wore were her wedding ring and a long, thin, silver necklace with a tear-shaped pendant resting between her breasts; it held one single sapphire. Having countless necklaces to choose from, most of which were a lot more impressive than this one, she was nevertheless certain that this was the necklace to wear today. It was the first Christmas gift she ever received from Lucius. Apparently, he had chosen this particular necklace because the sapphire reminded him of her eyes. She smiled at her reflection at the thought.

The previous evening had been spent in a frantic search for the damn thing… she probably hadn't worn it since the day she had gotten married and her new husband had given her a diamond choker that sparkled so much it almost hurt one's eyes and was so heavy she never once got used to the weight of it around her slender throat. She loved it.

"Tippy!" she called imperiously. While her voice was not overly loud, the requested House Elf nevertheless appeared immediately. The bandages wrapped around its long fingers were a silent testimony to the lady's disgruntlement of the night before.

"Mistress!" it squeaked, bowing down low.

"Make sure the two best rooms in the guest wing are prepared. You ought to know what I expect. If I come home to find that your work is not to my satisfaction, you will suffer the consequences," she stated in a cultured, yet unfeeling tone of voice. "Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes Mistress!" the elf squeaked submissively. "Perfectly, Mistress! Tippy will do as ordered, Mistress. Mistress will be pleased…"

"Enough!" said Narcissa.

The look she shot the little creature caused it to bow hastily before making a silent and speedy exit. For a moment longer, the aristocratic features held their expression of irritation mingled with contempt. Then she carefully assumed a neutral expression and disapparated.

She soon found herself passing through Hogwarts' gates when she, as hastily as elegance would allow, walked up to the castle. Once inside, she turned towards the steps leading to the dungeons. Knowing nothing of the Ministry invasion, she assumed the dark Professor was in his private rooms getting ready for another day at the Ministry or even in that dratted lab he appeared to like so much. The idea that even Severus Snape needed to eat every once in a while and might therefore be found at the breakfast table in the Great Hall did not cross her mind.

Narcissa hadn't had much occasion to visit the castle, but she was fairly sure she could remember where Severus Snape's quarters were. Some people would call it luck, others would declare that it was fate, which caused her to take a wrong turn somewhere along the way. And as luck, or fate, would have it, the little aberration on her part happened to place her in a little-used corridor just as her husband passed through the main hallway, returning from his visit with the Potions Master. She realised her mistake quickly and retraced her steps, but by then, the blond wizard had already disappeared around the corner and neither knew of the other's presence so close-by.

Se had not walked far, when the very person she was looking for came sweeping through some door further down the corridor. As he turned towards her, she was faced with a disconcerting sight: a very small smile appeared to be playing on his lips.

Narcissa had never quite understood why her husband had always been so fond of Severus. In her mind, there was little they had in common and when in his company she seldom felt at ease. The dark-haired wizard was far too observant for her liking; she didn't want to think about what would make him smile. It could not be anything pleasant.

She schooled her features into a pleased smile.

"Severus! Could I have a moment of your time?"

The Potions Master walked towards her, black robes swirling behind him.

"Good morning, Narcissa," he said neutrally, his features betraying nothing of his earlier mood. "What can I do for you?"

"I wanted to offer my assistance in clearing my husband's name," she said calmly, her voice strong.

The Potions Professor pulled up his eyebrows in a silent query.

"Miss Granger's actions at the Ministry yesterday have proven who my real husband is," she explained in a soft voice. "I have been lying awake all night, thinking about it. I felt dreadful…" her voice caught at that and she started toying with her necklace nervously.

"I have been living a lie for the past twenty years," she whispered, her eyes tearing up. "And I can't even bear to think about what Lucius' life must have been like."

She pulled a frilly white handkerchief from her robe pocket and dabbed at her eyes, careful not to disrupt the delicate glamour charms that had her looking so beautiful. Narcissa Malfoy played the part of the distressed wife to its fullest potential.

Unfortunately distressed females of any kind were hardly the specialty of Severus Snape. The dark-haired man didn't know what to do with crying women and in general had little patience with them. Years ago he had tried to appear sympathetic, but finding that it only made him look impatient and annoyed, he nowadays preferred to just wait for it to end. Or simply walk away. Up until now, Miss Granger was the only notable exception to that rule. Thank Merlin he was Head of Slytherin and the female students of his house were much more inclined towards revenge than crying when something, or someone, upset them.

After having displayed an appropriate amount of distress, the still watery, blue eyes looked up at the Slytherin Professor. "When I got up this morning, I had decided that I would not stand by and allow that idiots at the Ministry to prevent justice from taking its due course; I want to help," she commented determinedly. "From Miss Granger's words I understood that you are having difficulty in finding out how to break the spell and are in need of further information. I am here to offer you full access to the Malfoy family library."

"That is a very generous offer, Narcissa," commented Snape. "But I thought Draco had already scanned your library for texts that might prove useful?"

"He probably has," Narcissa conceded. "However, I know that Lu-I mean _that bastard_ kept the more _interesting_ books somewhere else in the Manor. I highly doubt Draco knows of their existence."

"Very well," Snape nodded, "in that case the books might prove very useful. I thank you, Narcissa."

He started walking towards the main parts of the castle. "We will have to wait with informing the others, since the Ministry is here at the moment."

"The Ministry?" queried Narcissa, walking alongside him.

"Yes. We received word early this morning that the Minister and Mr Gibson were planning to honour us with an unexpected visit; I expect them to have arrived by now."

"How odd," commented Mrs Malfoy.

Snape merely grunted his agreement. For a moment, the two of them walked besides each other in silence, the sound of their footsteps and the swishing of their robes echoing in the cold, bare hallway.

"Do I look alright?" questioned the blonde witch, breaking the silence suddenly. At this, the Potions Master could hardly refrain from rolling his eyes; if there was anything he was more ill-equipped to deal with than crying females, it would be females angling for compliments on their appearance. He was hardly a complimentary man by nature and blatant attempts to turn him into one were never received with much grace.

Before he could utter a reply that would be cutting enough to satisfy his snarky disposition and subtle enough to not mortally offend his best friend's wife, Narcissa continued, oblivious to her partner's aversion.

"It was most inconvenient having to dress this morning now that Maeve is gone," she said, "she always knows the appropriate dress for every occasion."

Snape halted in his tracks as suddenly as if someone had petrified him.

"What did you just say?" he asked dangerously soft while he turned, his gaze intent on the elegant creature who was looking at him with a confused look.

"She always knows the appropriate dress for every occasion…" Narcissa repeated uncertainly.

"Before that," hissed Snape, unaware of the menacing tone his voice had taken on.

"You mean the part about Maeve being gone?" the witch asked, surprise evident in her features as well as her tone of voice.

"When did she leave?" he pressed on.

"I am not sure," said Narcissa, "I haven't seen her since I gave her the night off when you and Lucius were invited for dinner."

"Do you know where she went?"

"She didn't leave a note to tell me where she had gone or when she'll be back. I assume she went to take care of one of her cousins or aunts or something. She has a rather large family and they appear to be in poor health often," she answered unworriedly. She shrugged. "No doubt she'll send an owl sometime today."

Professor Snape however was less inclined to think that Maeve's absence would be of a temporary nature. He barely took the time to say: "Come with me!" before stalking off with a swish of his robes.

"Severus...? Severus!" cried Mrs Malfoy, trying to keep up with his long legs, "what's the matter? Why does this seem so important to you?"

Not bothering to slow down the Potions Master growled: "Because Maeve Jaminon is one of the people suspected of aiding the Death Eaters to gain entrance to the Manor the night they took Lucius!"


	19. Scheming

**Disclaimer**: oh for Merlin's sake, this is the nineteenth chapter. You should know by now my first name is not Joanne!

**AN**: hello there, everybody! Yep, the writing bug has infected me once again and even though I still have three weeks of uni to go, I can't seem to stop writing. Maybe it is _because_ I still have three weeks of uni to go…can't say I am highly motivated to study at the moment ;-) anyway, I had the feeling you might not mind to have a timely update for a change :-)

**Jaid Ziaen**: Melody, I am glad you are back girl. Thank you for confirming my honorary title, I will never doubt you again, I swear! I still love your vociferous reviews: you had me laughing :-) There'll be more Cissa this chapter, so see for yourself what she is up to…. Thank you.

**Raven217**: Thank you for a most flattering review. I have this weird fondness for Lucius and Snape too, so you won't get any strange looks from me ;-) I am glad you like the story so much and I will certainly try to finish it. As long as I get these wonderful reviews, I am at least highly motivated to do so. I'll file you under the doesn't-trust-Cissa-group then, shall I?

**Lady Norskstar**: glad you liked the Snape and Lucius scene. It was one of those scenes that you just start on and it flows from the keyboard almost effortlessly. I can see it happening clearly in my mind and all I have to do is write it down, lol. Those are the best scenes, generally. Thank you for the review.

**Corri**: yep, questions, questions, questions…that's me ;-) some of them will be answered in the chapter below, although I am afraid a whole bunch of new ones will emerge. I hope you enjoy the story anyway ;-) thank you.

**Dracodolenz**: three more weeks to go….but I am pretty good at procrastinating on my school work ;-) Speedy update, huh? Hope you like! And thank you for reviewing.

**Amishgirl281**: I'm sorry about the cliffies… it just happens, I swear! I mean, I wouldn't want to spill all my secrets at once, now would I? thank you for reviewing :-)

**Shy-n-great**: your review is so wonderful, my sister. I like studying people and looking for what they are feeling and I don't think you could have made me a better compliment than saying it shows in my stories. I hope you like the next chapter as well :-)

**Anxiously waiting**: I'm glad you like the story so far….but you are aware the pairing's LM/HG? (ducks) Please don't stop reading now!

**Sln1987**: thank you! Well, I updated pretty soon, didn't I? Two weeks isn't too bad.

**Chantal J**: thank you! I love writing addictive stories…seeing that I am addicted to the wonderful reviews you lot keep sending me :-) Yes, Narcissa is Slytherin, I'll give you that…now what would she be up to?

**Shadow-mai**: (peers anxiously over the edge of her desk)… Is it safe to come out now? (gingerly seats herself in her desk chair, ready to bolt at the first sign of trouble) About the cliffies…as I said: I don't do it on purpose! There's just me writing a story and not wanting to spill the beans on everything. The cliffies just happen. I swear sometimes they surprise even me. The characters have a way of getting their own way; I'd be planning on writing a particular scene and when I'm done it turns out completely different from what I had in mind. It happened in this chapter as well. Big time. Anyway thank you for the review. I'll be so bold as to take it as a compliment :-)

**Jay**: Dumbledore's remark should become a little clearer with the chapter below…thank you, Hermione ;-) I tried to insert a little HG/LM into this chapter so I hope you like. Thank you for a lovely review, as always.

**SeverusSnape'sLove**: Thank you for the compliment! well, I did update soon, didn't I? (looks proud of herself)

**RoughIslandSunrise**: I did! I did! I haven't updated in only two weeks' time for I don't know how long! Hope you enjoy :-)

**Mary**: I'll tell you, I've been dying for Lucius to kiss Hermione again as well. At the moment they won't permit me more than a little moment between them, I am quite sorry to say. Bear with me, they will be kissing again before this story ends, I swear ;-) thanks for reviewing.

**Katharina-B**: thank you for the lovely compliments on the Snape/Lucius scene. I rather liked that one myself. It's one of those scenes that almost writes itself, as if I have nothing to do with it. Hope you enjoy the next chapter as well.

**Jalen Strix**: how wonderful of you to compliment me on the dialogue. It is one of the things I find extremely difficult to write and am almost never satisfied with when I write a first draft of any given chapter. I always think that things are slightly out of character to say, so I keep correcting and hope that it turns out al right. I am never quite sure that it has when I post but most of the time the chapter's grown on me. Your review puts my mind at ease, so thank you so much!

**Dragon-diva**: thank you for the compliments. I am going to explain what Snape has been up to from Lucius' point of view, but I haven't found room for it yet in this chapter. It will be explained though.

**Jennayster**: ooh, I am positively giddy when I read your review. It is so nice to hear you like the story so much and that I managed to surprise you with the kiss between Lucius and Hermione. Your comment about my vocabulary is also most welcome, I am not a native speaker so it is great to find that my linguistic skills aren't too bad. Thank you so much.

**Duchesscarml**: tee-hee. So Narcissa confuses you, does she? Well, she is a pretty complex character to figure out, I guess. Although I am surprised you are not sure whether or not you like her…I think the majority of my reviewers want to slap her or something of the sort ;-) And as for Maeve…well, there is certainly something 'shady' about her. We will be seeing more of her this chapter, so maybe that will help you make up your mind :-)

**Sunny moonlight**: ah I see you also are suspicious of our dear Cissa. I wonder what it is that makes people so wary of her intentions ;-) lol. As usual, this chapter will answer some questions and create some more. I am evil, yes. But it gets me my reviews! ;-) thank you so much for yours. I really look forward to reading your opinion on the next chapter.

**Xtreme Nuisance**: I take it the pairing took you by surprise? You might be a Draco-Hermione shipper…or would you rather I paired her up with Severus? I hope you are still reading the story and anyway, thank you for reviewing.

**Faery**: I said it before and I'll say it again: I just love Snape as a character. He is such fun to write, so many layers, so many mysteries… About Cissa… I'll send you an application form of the I-don't-trust-Narcissa-Malfoy-one-bit-association as well then? ;-) Thnx!

**Shadowwarriors-angel**: I must repeat again that I really like reading your reviews. I love all the detailed comments you put into them and finding a review of yours in my mailbox just as much makes my day as finding an update from this story appears to make yours. Thank you so much and I hope you like the next chapter as well :-)

**Guardgirl**: I can imagine you wanting some Hermione-Lucius interaction. There is some in this chapter, although the characters had a way of preventing me from what I originally planned to write. I hope your appetite for a little fluffiness between the two of them can be stilled for now and I solemnly swear that once I have them where I want them, the characters will have no way of preventing me from creating an avalanche of fluff. It's going to take some chapters though…bear with me, please.

**Porcelain87**: thank you, thank you, thank you. Such a lovely review. There will be more Maeve in this chapter and Hermione will explain a little about what the Ministry might be up to. Hope you like it as well as you seem to like the previous chapter.

**Sorceress Black**: ah, another new name. I must say your review has me bouncing with joy and leaves me with a furious blush of pleasure on my cheeks. After more than three hundred reviews now I still can't accurately describe how it makes me feel to learn that other people enjoy my story so much. I can tell you that I would have given up on it long before if it weren't for the encouragement I get from you readers. Thank you so much for that and I hope you continue reading the story.

**Star-angel23**: I am glad to have you back as a reviewer. Trust me, I can well understand how real life gets in the way of 'trivial' things like fanfiction. I only manage to write, because it is one of my main sources of relaxation. I just love watching people around me and if I see something interesting try and incorporate that into a story. Whatever I am doing, Lucius is never far from the back of my mind ;-) I hope now that you have settled some important things you will have more time to enjoy yourself. Good luck with your new job!

**Kirsten36**: thank you so much for the wonderful compliments! I haven't kept you waiting too long, now have I? No, I've been a good girl, SnapeSeraphin has ;-)

**Atlas452**: well, if your review is anything to go by you only needed to wait for about four days for an update! That is pretty good, if I do say so myself ;-) You are so right about the tension between Hermione, Lucius and Narcissa. That is going to be pretty hard on all of them I think. Thank you so much for the review!

**Vodka-tears**: okay how do you manage to come up with such an extraordinary compliment? I find the idea that you are daydreaming about this story when you are fed up with your exams so very sweet. I thank you for the lovely, lovely comment. I hope this chapter will have you daydreaming some more! ;-)

**Smenzer**: thank you so much. I am glad you like the story, especially the part on the surprises. I try very hard to keep the story from being too predictable – which is rather hard, seeing that the pairing is already known… ;-) anyway, please keep reading and I hope you enjoy!

Phew… that only took me an hour ;-) I am so very glad with all the lovely reviews I receive from you. Now…the next chapter. As I mentioned I had certain plans for this chapter but some of the characters utterly refused to cooperate with me and had to have it their own way (looks sternly at those particularcharacters).

The result is the chapter you find below. I must say, that even though it didn't turn out to be what I initially planned, I still like the end-result. I hope you will too.

Below, chapter 19, in which there is more than a little scheming and Hermione finds out some surprising things about herself.

* * *

**To Save a Malfoy**

Ch 19. Scheming

"Similis aquebus!"

As the vine wand made an intricate movement over the book, a second book shimmered into existence. Hermione flicked it open to make sure the contents had been copied correctly as well. It had.

"Neat spell, Hermione," said Ron.

"Yeah," agreed Harry, "but care to explain why you are copying books?"

"Because that is what Professor Dumbledore meant," declared Hermione as she scooped up the copy into her arms. While she crossed the room to where a floor-to-ceiling bookcase took up an entire wall she explained.

"Professor Dumbledore told me to update the patients' files and _create references_. Now as you all know the Healers from St. Mungo's took on almost all my patients when they arrived and have transported the last of them to St. Mungo's weeks ago. The only one who could be considered my 'patient' at the moment is Lucius, unless you insist on counting in Professor Snape who cut his finger the other day. So whatever Professor Dumbledore wanted me to do, it has something to do with Lucius, you see?"

She was silent for a moment as her eyes roved over the rows upon rows of books, sometimes lingering on this volume or that for a moment longer. Draco, Ron and Harry had long since learned not to prompt her for information when she was like this. In a moment's time she would continue where she left off. Hermione proved them right within the minute.

"When he said I could enlist the help of Professor Snape like I did the last time, he must have been talking about the ancient runes translation the Professor helped me with. Combined with the 'creating references' remark, I concluded that he wanted me to make a back-up of the text of the Namiya Damaya."

"But why would he want you to do that?" asked Ron.

Hermione shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine. As long as we don't know exactly what the Ministry is doing here, we cannot be certain. But I for one am guessing they didn't bring that army of clerks here to sit around and eat breakfast."

"I suppose it makes sense to take proper precautions," said Draco. "Gibson can't be too happy you kicked his arse using information from a book he described as absolute nonsense."

"Which was way cool, by the way," said Harry.

"You sound like a teenager, Harry!" sighed Hermione.

"Hey, I never did have time to be one when I was one, so I have to make up for lost time," said her friend petulantly. His green eyes sparkled mischievously.

"Spare me," snorted the young woman. "Better help me think of a good disguise for this book."

"You mean it would stick out if you, oh I don't know, put it between all the other books in your bookcase?" said Ron in a tone of voice that was reminiscent of Draco's drawl.

Hermione sighed again. "I copied the book, Ron. It says Namiya Damaya on the side, even if it is in Runic; I am willing to bet that at least one of those six clerks is very good at that particular language."

Before any of them could come up with a good disguise for the book or an answering remark even, there was a knock at the door.

"Shite!" hissed Hermione under her breath. In spite of the serious situation, the other three gave each other meaningful looks, grinning.

"Coming!" the occupant of the rooms said, frantically looking around for a place to hide the copied book.

"Miss Granger?" a familiar voice queried.

Hermione emitted a sound that was halfway between a sigh of relief and a chuckle.

"Come on in, Lucius."

As the elder Malfoy stepped into the room, he couldn't help but notice the varying degrees of relief on the faces of the four young friends.

"Did I miss something?" he asked with a slight quirk of his mouth.

"We thought you were Fudge or Gibson," Ron explained.

"I'll just pretend I didn't hear that," said Lucius wryly. "Why are you so anxious not to see them? Beside the obvious, of course."

"We need to disguise this book first," explained Hermione, "Now what wouldn't Gibson be interested in? We can't rely on the fact that it is in Runic; he's already fallen for that once and he won't do it again."

"Muggles?" suggested Lucius.

Hermione thought it over. It was simple and they could be fairly certain that Gibson (and Fudge as well probably) would cast aside anything that was thought of by Muggles without a second thought. In short, it was quite brilliant.

"Lucius, I could kiss you!" she exclaimed enthusiastically and turned back to her bookcase.

Only when she noticed the sudden silence, did she realise what she had just said.

"I meant that as a figure of speech!" she snapped and threw an exasperated glance over her shoulder.

"You never say you could kiss me," said Ron.

"That's because you, contrary to Lucius, would take me up on the offer," she mumbled absentmindedly. She performed a charm on the Namiya Damaya back-up.

"Besides," she continued, "you didn't come up with a brilliant disguise for the copy." Meticulously she cleared a space on one of the shelves and inserted 'A Wizard's Guide to Muggle Fairytales' next to a book on Arabic wizarding sagas. She gave her work a contented nod and turned back to face the four wizards.

Ron was looking slightly put out, Draco was smirking, Harry was looking at her with a strange gleam in his eyes and Lucius she couldn't read.

"Oh honestly!" she exclaimed, "Will you just drop it already?"

"I will if you promise to kiss me the next time I have a brilliant idea," said Ron.

"That's a promise you won't ever have to worry about making good on," smirked Draco.

"I didn't hear her offering the same deal to you, ferret."

"If she were to kiss me for every brilliant idea I get, she'd be doing nothing else!" declared Draco confidently, delighting in goading Ron.

"Are we all regressing to our childhood here?" said Hermione despairingly.

Lucius was puzzling on something else entirely. "I get most of your nicknames, but one of these days you are going to have to explain to me why you refer to my son as 'ferret'," he said thoughtfully.

This caused Harry and Ron to burst out in uproarish laughter, especially when they saw Draco scowling to rival Professor Snape's blackest look.

Lucius pulled up his eyebrows at a grinning Hermione, mouthing 'what did I say?' over the heads of his son and his two friends.

'Later' the brown-haired witched mouthed back, her eyes twinkling merrily.

As the laughter died down somewhat, she said: "How about we all go back down and see if we can find out what the Ministry is up to? I for one am rather curious what they have come up with now."

"I'll see if I can find Professor Snape," said Draco.

"Why don't we go to the Great Hall and start from there?" said Harry to Ron. The lanky red-head nodded his approval. Both turned expectant gazes on Hermione.

"I'll start at the library," she said.

"Hermione," interrupted Lucius. "Do you think I could have a moment of your time before you head down?"

"Of course."

"We'll go ahead," said Ron.

"And if anyone asks where the two of you are, we'll say that father had to see you on medical grounds." Draco, ever the cunning strategist was already preparing for the very real possibility that any of the Ministry employees could ask where Lucius and Hermione were.

"Good thinking, Draco," said Hermione.

Lucius nodded in agreement. "Yes. I do believe I am developing a slight ache in my shoulder," he declared, rubbing a hand over his right shoulder blade, a devilish gleam in his eyes.

"That sounds pretty serious," deadpanned Hermione. "I think I should take a look at it right now."

"See you in a minute, 'Mione," Harry winked at her while he shoved the other two out of the door.

As the door closed behind them, there was a slightly awkward silence between the two people left in the room. The easy relationship she had had with Lucius seemed to be a thing of the past most of the time now. Especially the last couple of days had been a bit awkward; she supposed it had all started with that ill-fated kiss between the two of them Before, she had always felt very comfortable in the elder Malfoy's company and not once had she needed to think about what to say. Now, the young Gryffindor often found herself fidgeting and at a loss for words. Facing the imposing wizard in front of her, she wracked her brain in order to find something suitable to say.

In the end, she didn't have to: Lucius beat her to it.

"Hermione," he said as he took both of her hands in his, "thank you for scolding me last night." He gave her hands a little squeeze, effectively cutting off the reply she was about to make.

"No, it was most definitely scolding and you were right. I should have given Severus the chance to explain himself. I should have realised that his behaviour of the past months didn't agree with him being a full-fledged Death Eater."

As his thumbs unconsciously started to rub small circles on the back of her hands, Hermione became acutely aware of the warm skin against hers. All of a sudden the delightful tingly feeling she had had when they kissed came back to her. Unable to break away, she stared into the silver eyes of her companion.

"We didn't discuss everything yet, but I think I made it clear to Severus that I will listen to his story and not condemn him. And once again I have you to thank for that."

"I am glad, Lucius," Hermione said sincerely.

"I must confess that I am starting to detest having to thank you" Lucius continued gravely, "That is another reason why I came to see you: give me an occupation to help my own case or I shall run mad."

His tone was entirely serious and for a moment Hermione felt apprehensive. Was she meddling into his affairs too much? Even if she meant it well, it could still very well be perceived as a nuisance.

And then she saw one corner of his mouth curling up slightly, languidly. She had to suppress the urge to smack his arm, like she would with Ron or Harry.

"Insufferable man," she murmured, giving him a mock offended look. "However…I don't think it'll be a problem to have you help."

She gave him an appraising look. "You don't happen to be brilliant in ancient Runes, do you?" she asked.

Lucius let out a chuckle. "I'm afraid that is Severus' area of expertise. Tell me there is something else I can do."

Hermione scraped her teeth over her bottom lip, thinking hard and completely unaware of the enticing sight she presented.

"Professor Snape wanted to see me in his office after breakfast…I think he wanted to have a brainstorm session about the Geminis Fortunae…" she voiced her thoughts, "the apparent absence of an artefact on the impostor is quite puzzling. How about you come along then and we'll take it from there?" she suggested.

Lucius nodded, a warm gleam of appreciation in his eyes.

"Gladly."

* * *

The inside of the house was nothing like one would expect after seeing the dilapidated appearance on the outside. Instead of a dark and dreary interior, the house was decorated in a style of simple elegance. The walls were deep beige with cream ornaments in the same colour as the high ceilings, giving the room a warm feel. Some parts of the dark wooden floor dimly reflected the crackling fire in the hearth, while others were covered with a thick comfortable rug in deep purple, the colour of which matched that of the luxurious curtains on the floor-to-ceiling windows. It breathed an atmosphere of timeless good taste. 

The furniture had a pleasant, worn look to it, but it was perfectly clear it was of the highest quality. Looking around in the elegant sitting room, no-one would doubt that the books in the corner were well-loved and the cognac in the decanter next to one of the armchairs was the finest money could buy. If one were to describe the room in one phrase, it would have to be 'old money'.

Inside such a room, the rather plain figure of Maeve Jaminon was decidedly out of place. She sat on the edge of one of the chairs, the deep grey and purple fabric with thin silver threads contrasting starkly with her ordinary brown robes. Her attire looked downright ratty in comparison. She was looking rather apprehensive to be sure, but that could be explained by the intense scrutiny she was under as well as the impressive décor.

The man standing in front of her was tall and his robes, even if the cut was somewhat outdated, were of a fine quality like everything else in the room. His shoulder-length hair was dark grey intermixed with silver and looked like he and Albert Einstein had the same hairdresser. Unlike most elder wizards, his strong and aristocratic features weren't half hidden behind a moustache or beard. His eyes were a piercing blue, not unlike Dumbledore's but there was no friendly twinkle to be found in this man's gaze.

On the contrary; the look he was giving Maeve at the moment would have made Professor Snape envious. It had the witch in question forgetting entirely that the man required the use of a cane and if nothing else, she should be able to outrun him. When she had come here she had been determined. Facing the wizard before her after all those years however, was not as easy as it had seemed when she planned it from her safe bedroom at Malfoy manor. She had forgotten his uncanny ability to make her squirm without even trying; normally she was a pretty hard nut to crack.

After what seemed an interminable amount of time, he finally spoke, his voice loud in the quiet of the room.

"Where did you see him?" There was no need to ask whom he was referring to.

"At the Manor."

"How can you be sure it was him and not the copy?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

"Narcissa was nervous," Maeve answered, wringing her robes in her lap.

"Explain."

The word sounded like a gunshot and Maeve couldn't help but flinch slightly, even as the wizard in front of her turned to the fireplace. Leaning heavily on his cane, he advanced a few steps towards the hearth. His presence was intimidating enough, even with his back turned to prompt the witch to answer.

"She gave me the night off, pretending to be worried about the amount of free time I had." Maeve overcame her apprehension enough to snort contemptuously. "Furthermore, she was testy and irritable, snapping at the House Elves and finding fault with every little detail…" Her voice trailed off. She wanted to say more, but wasn't entirely certain how the information would be received.

The old man abruptly turned to her.

"What is it? Out with it!" he ordered curtly. Maeve had to suppress the urge to roll her eyes. She should have known she couldn't keep anything hidden from his keen mind. A cunning bastard, this one was. Besides, he had known her for entirely too long and he may be old but he was by no means going senile.

"It wasn't just Narcissa. Her behaviour alerted me to the fact that there was something going on. But when I observed him…I could see the difference."

She fell silent, her eyes getting a faraway look to them. In her mind's eye she recalled the events she witnessed from the protective darkness of one of the many chambers inside of Malfoy Manor.

"He appeared to be confident, but I picked up a sense of…hesitance in him. And he seemed surprised at the behaviour of Teela, yet the creature did exactly like he instructed all the house elves himself."

"What you are saying is merely speculation. I haven't heard one thing yet that convinces me you saw the real Lucius that day," the man commented gruffly, turning his impressive glare on Maeve.

"That is not all," said she. "Toward the end of the dinner, Lucius came storming out of the dining room as if he was being chased by a hoard of Hippogriffs. He was pale and sweating and had to lean against the wall to prevent his knees from buckling from under him."

She had his full attention now, she saw as the glare was replaced by a puzzled frown, the blue eyes slightly narrowed.

"Severus Snape came out after him and supported him. Narcissa offered to floo for Harris, but Lucius insisted he didn't want to see him."

She looked the grey-haired man dead in the eye.

"Alexander, he asked Snape to take him to _Granger_." She paused for effect. "_Back to Hogwarts_."

A heavy silence fell over the room. The old wizard had redirected his gaze at some faraway point over her head at her last words and he was staring into the distance. What he saw there, only he could tell. When finally he moved, he seemed to be leaning more heavily on the cane than he had before. He dropped into the high wing backed chair closest to the fire with a dazed look on his face. As he poured himself some of the cognac, Maeve could see his hands trembling. He downed the amber liquid in two large gulps.

"So it is true then," he said softly, "he really has returned home."

Maeve nodded.

"How on earth is this possible?" Alexander asked.

"I don't know. Our sources at the Ministry report that Lucius has arrived every day since the beginning of the trial in the company of Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, the Gryffindor Golden trio and his son. There are no public reports that there are two Lucius Malfoys at this time, so we can only assume that the copy is still being held at Azkaban prison."

"How can this be? We tried everything; we were so sure this could never happen! What did I miss?" The deep voice had taken on a hint of the relentless need to know that Maeve remembered well from her earlier dealings with the wizard. She had no patience for that now.

"This is not the time for trying to piece the puzzle together, Alexander!" she snapped, forgetting her earlier apprehension, "We have to do something _now_."

The wizard nodded thoughtfully as he poured himself another drink. His face was illuminated by the dancing flames, his forbidding countenance enhanced by the shadows cast upon it.

"You are right," he muttered darkly, "We have not succeeded all those years ago, but we _will_ succeed now."

* * *

The subject of their discussion was at Hogwarts, walking down towards the library and blissfully ignorant of Maeve and Alexander's scheming. Since his discussion that morning with Severus, Lucius felt much better than he had in days. He had concluded that it must have been because he had been able to do something for someone else instead of people helping him all the time. That was why he had decided to ask Hermione to let him join in on the research when he went to thank her. He had a brain of his own and he'd be more than happy to use it, thank you very much. 

At the moment, it was engaged in discussing some of the books that were, to his knowledge, present in the Malfoy family library and which could prove useful to their cause.

"Do you think Draco can get them for us?" Hermione asked eagerly, her eyes shining at the prospect of the knowledge that would be contained in them. Lucius smiled indulgently at her; he had by now grown accustomed to her enthusiasm when it came to books.

"I don't think that should be a problem," he said airily.

Hermione was about to respond, but she was interrupted by a soft cry of 'Lucius' from the bottom of the flight of stairs they were descending. As she looked down, she saw the forbidding form of Professor Snape in his voluminous black robes and the dainty, feminine figure of Narcissa Malfoy dressed in bright blue, looking as elegant and graceful as ever. It was the latter that had called upon her companion.

Contrary to her behaviour of the day before at the Ministry, the wife of Lucius Malfoy appeared to have decided where her loyalties were as she hurried up the stairs to meet them.

"Lucius…" she repeated breathlessly when she reached her destination and looked up at her husband, standing one step above her on the stairs. Her clear blue eyes were large and pleading and shining suspiciously. For a moment she appeared unable to speak and Hermione found herself unconsciously holding her breath when she saw the carefully schooled features of Lucius. He wasn't fooling her: she could see the first faint glimmer of hope appearing in his eyes.

"I…Miss Granger convinced me," Narcissa stuttered, gaze roving over her husband's face as if willing him to believe her.

For a moment, it looked as if her words made no sense at all to the tall, blond wizard. Then, he swallowed convulsively a couple of times and stared down at his wife in apparent disbelief.

"Are…are you…?" He seemed incapable of finishing his sentence and instead he reached for her hands in much the same way he had reached for Hermione's not an hour ago. The young Gryffindor witch saw the infinite tenderness in the gesture and felt a lump forming in her own throat.

The two were staring at each other, Lucius clearly forgetting the world around him and his unwilling audience. Hermione, much as she felt that she was intruding was unable to move from her spot as the elder Malfoy finally regained the ability of speech.

"Are you certain?" he asked in a harsh whisper.

At that, Narcissa started crying. She brought one trembling hand up to gently cup her husband's strong jaw in her hand. "Oh Lucius…"

Somehow that was all it took. The next moment he had pulled her into his arms and their mouths met in a passionate kiss. Narcissa's hands came up to tangle in the long silky blond hair and Lucius' arms went around the slender witch pulling her closer still. They kissed hungrily, hands grasping, clawing and tangling in each other's robes and hair. After a while they pulled apart to look into their beloved's eyes.

"I love you…I love you so much, Cissa," whispered Lucius, his voice rough.

"I'm sorry…" hiccupped Narcissa, still crying, "I am so sorry…I didn't know…I should have known…"

"Hush now." The blond wizard pulled her close to him again and cradled her head in the hollow between his shoulder and neck. "It's alright. Everything will be all right now," he soothed his wife, kissing the top of her head repeatedly. His own eyes were bright with unshed tears.

Not too long after that both pulled back to be able to look at that cherished face again. Lucius' eyes were shining both with happiness and still unshed tears. His fingers caressed his beloved's hair as one of the tears spilled and made its way down his pale cheek. Completely mesmerised by his spouse he didn't seem to notice.

The moment was of a heart-wrenching beauty and Hermione knew she had never seen Lucius look happier. His love that had kept him sane for the past twenty years was once again reciprocated. It felt much too private to look in on, maybe even more so than his reunion with Draco and silently she resumed her path. Husband and wife remained standing halfway down the stairs, whispering urgently to each other again and unaware of Hermione making her solitary way down.

She hardly noticed when she arrived at the bottom of the stairs, not paying attention where she was going. Why, if one of Lucius' most fervent wishes had just come true, did she have the feeling she wanted to cry?

She turned back and looked up at the reunited couple. She saw Lucius press another achingly tender kiss on her mouth, pulling back immediately to look in his wife's eyes. Narcissa's hand came up again and lovingly stroked the long blond hair behind his ear. Her other hand nestled itself in the fabric of the robes covering his chest with a sense of familiarity. Looking at them Hermione was hit by a wave of remembered sensations. As clear as if she were in his arms right now she could recall the warm silkiness of his lips, the soft smooth hair and the intoxicating scent she'd come to associate with Lucius. When the truth of the matter hit her, it stopped her dead in her tracks.

She didn't want Narcissa to make him happy. She didn't want anyone else to make him happy for that matter. It was a privilege she wanted for herself and herself alone. She wanted his eyes to shine like that for her. She wanted to be the one he kissed; she wanted to be the one whose eyes mesmerised him and had him forgetting the rest of the world even existed. Unbeknownst to herself, she made a small choking noise. There was no use denying it.

She was completely in love with Lucius.

She suddenly realised she had loved him for quite some time. And it had all started when he had first responded to her request to squeeze her fingers so very long ago.

A warm hand on her shoulder startled her from her shocking self-reflection and she looked up into the unreadable face of Severus Snape.

"Come with me," he said quietly. Hermione didn't resist when he pulled her away, his hand still on her shoulder. She was too shocked to pay attention to where he was taking her and neither she nor the professor noticed the figure of Draco Malfoy standing just inside the doors that lead to the Great Hall.

* * *

**AN**: the line Lucius uses with Hermione is adapted from Colonel Brandon's line "Give me an occupation, Miss Dashwood, or I shall run mad." in Sense and Sensibility.

The slow smirk Lucius gives Hermione as she fears he thinks she's meddling in his affairs too much was inspired by the delightful Mr. Isaacs. If you don't already know what I am talking about, go and take a look at the interview with him on the Chamber of Secrets DVD and watch carefully after he deadpans that he asked for his character to have long blond hair, so people could tell him (Isaacs) apart from Tom Felton, who of course portrays Draco Malfoy.

In case this chapter has given you doubts: the pairing has most definitely NOT changed. This was and still is an HG/LM.


	20. Fallout

**Disclaimer**: not mine, despite fervent wishing and copious daydreaming.

**AN**: I am so very sorry for taking this long to update. Since I've been getting rather a lot of reviews asking me whether I had given up on the story I am uploading this chapter, even though I had first intended to add another scene. I suppose it will work nicely this way as well and at least you will have gotten your way ;-)

Updates from now on may be few and far between since I am starting my internships come Monday. They're supposed to be really hard and busy, so I'm not sure how much time I'll have to continue on with this. I will try to finish it nevertheless. It has been too much fun and all you reviewers have been too marvellous a crowd to disappoint.

Once again I am extremely grateful for all the lovely, eloquent, enthusiastic, sweet reviews you have seen fit to send me. Know that every single one of them manages to make me smile and make my day.

You might have heard rumours flying on FFN that it is no longer allowed for writers to respond directly to their reviewers. Since that was something I much enjoyed as well I am joining the effort to get this rule reverted and I hope all or you will too. In the meantime, much to my regret, there will be no personal thank-you's…. :-(

Now, on to the (slightly shorter) next chapter, in which Draco goes back in time and Gibson causes trouble yet again.

* * *

**To Save a Malfoy**

Ch. 20 Fall-out

Hermione didn't know how long they had been walking and wouldn't have been able to tell one way or the other whether they were on dungeon-level or up in the highest tower when she became aware of someone pressing a glass of water into her hand.

Dumbly, she looked down at it, before looking up at the dark and comfortingly familiar face of professor Snape.

"You _know_," she said quietly. It wasn't a question.

"I have suspected it for a while, yes," he conceded.

Hermione looked back down again and for lack of having something more constructive to do, she took a sip of water.

"I feel so stupid."

"You needn't. After all one cannot control who one falls in love with," the Potions Master said quietly, a conviction to his words, the Gryffindor never would have suspected.

"But he's _married_," said Hermione. "I knew from the very beginning he was clinging to his love for Narcissa…" her voice trailed off.

"That didn't keep you from kissing him." Surprisingly, it was said without malice.

"It was an accident," blurted Hermione. She felt her cheeks flush when she realized what she had just said and to whom. "I mean…I…I didn't mean for it to happen," she amended.

"I suppose you didn't." Whether or not Snape had been meaning to say more became a matter of pure conjecture when he was cut off abruptly by a cold voice from the direction of the door.

"Would you care to explain to me what you were doing, _kissing my father_?"

Hermione's head shot up at the sound of Draco's voice. She felt the colour that had been rising to her cheeks only seconds ago drain from her face even more quickly.

"Draco…" she forced out past the lump in her throat and hated how piteously pleading her voice sounded. The gaze that he directed at her was cold and cutting.

Just like that, it was as if that conversation on the Hogwarts express had never taken place. The young man who stood before her was nothing but an older version of the boy who had made her first five years at Hogwarts exceedingly difficult.

"Explain yourself," he repeated imperiously. He spoke slowly and in anger.

"It just happened," Hermione said softly, her head sinking down in spite of herself. She idly watched the water move inside the glass as she tipped it this way and then that.

"It just happened?" exploded Draco, who all of a sudden stood right in front of her. He put a hand under her chin and forced her to look up at him. Even though it wasn't a rough gesture, Hermione felt it would have hurt less if he had hit her.

"It just happened?" he repeated, once again, incredulously. "He is married; he loves my mother! You are his _medi-witch_. Things like this are not supposed to happen! Do you have any idea what he went through? Do you know how much he wanted to get back home, how he held onto that image in his darkest hours? Have you got even an inkling of what it would mean to him to lose all of that now that he is so close to regaining it?"

The cold measured tone of his voice, the sparkle of anger in his silver eyes, the hint of a familiar and much-despised sneer on his mouth combined with the shock Hermione had just had and the stress of the last couple of days was too much.

The young woman forcefully set the glass in her hand onto the table and pushed herself from the couch she'd been sitting on. She felt as if she was breathing fire: there was no stopping the words that were anxious to burst from her mouth with alarming speed and intensity. Inside of her they created a burning feeling just behind her breastbone, emotions churning, concentrating in one single point of ever increasing intensity, the sheer pain of which she couldn't bear. Even as a small part of her mind wanted to check her sentences, let it all out in socially acceptable descriptions, the hurt forced her to pour out all of the pent-up frustration, anger and sorrow with more precipitateness than deliberation.

"Do I know what he went through?" she asked incredulously. "You're asking if I _know_ what he went through? Who spent the first week at his bedside 24/7? Who had barely any sleep at all until I could be sure that _your father_ wasn't having another nightmare? Who soothed him when there was no-one else around? Who was the _only_ one he could talk to after he had that anxiety attack? It wasn't you, it wasn't your mother, it wasn't Professor Snape… it was ME, Malfoy!"

"I have been taking care of him since Harry and Ron brought him to me; I was the one he first responded to when he was coming around, I was the one who spent hours keeping him company and I have offered up all of my spare time for the last two months so I could help your father.

I got used to his company like he got used to mine; I _like_ your father. He is intelligent and witty and has this impossible grace and self-confidence just like you do, that at times makes you jealous and at times makes you want to scream... He is one of the few people I know that can make Professor Snape laugh and I think the only one who can get away with teasing him unpunished. What has happened to him is utterly unbearable but he seems to be handling it quite well most of the time….

And still… when I think about it for too long I want to cry and scream and throw a tantrum. I want to scratch out the impostor's eyes and kill Voldemort slowly and painfully all over again. I have been turning the library upside down in the hopes of finding out more about the spell that was used on him and I haven't had a good night's sleep in I don't know how long. But it doesn't matter. Because your father, Draco, is a good man who deserves to be happy.

So when he had that anxiety attack and I noticed that he was bottling everything up inside, I tricked him into venting his feelings and he was so sad and I only meant to console him and somehow I ended up kissing him instead and he kissed me back and it was _wonderful_ until my brain started working again and I realised I was kissing a married man and he was in love with your mother and everything was such a mess…"

Her soliloquy came to an abrupt halt, her breath coming in short, harsh gasps.

Her hands pulled back towards her chest and crunched handfuls of red satin between their fingers. When she started speaking again, her voice was low and anguished and barely louder than a whisper.

"Your father still loves your mother very much. She was his first love, I think and he held on to her image as he did to yours when he was close to giving up. Since he realised he was no longer Voldemort's captive all he ever wanted to do was see her again and be with the woman he loved. The night before we first went to the Ministry he was out of his mind with worry, because he was going to see Narcissa again." Once again her eyes were clouded with unshed tears.

"I _know_ that, maybe even more than you do. I know all of it, but Merlin help me, I fell in love with him. I am completely in love with a man who has only one woman's name on his lips."

She looked up with fury in her eyes once more. "So don't you dare lecture me on what is and what isn't supposed to happen! I know damn well what isn't supposed to happen and it happened anyway and there was nothing I could do to stop it!

However, since there was never any doubt of where his affections lie, my fate in this has been decided a long time ago. I resent the fact that you think I would try and mess things up between your parents. I would never _ever_ do anything that might threaten your father's happiness… He has deserved that much from me at least. So you can take your righteous indignation and _sod the fuck off, Draco Malfoy_!"

Hermione stood in front of Draco, breathing harshly like a wounded animal. Before he could think of an appropriate response, she turned and practically fled from the room, leaving a stunned Draco in her wake. He blinked slowly and for once looked quite thick as he tried to wrap his mind around what had just happened. Up until a few moments ago he would have bet an obscene amount of money on the fact that Hermione Granger would never, under any circumstances be tempted to use the word 'fuck'.

When someone behind him spoke, he jumped, having completely forgotten that his former Head of House was still in the room, a silent witness to the furious argument that had just taken place.

"Well," Snape said in that velvety voice of his, "you certainly handled that well."

* * *

The quiet susurration of a long, dark-blue cloak against neatly trimmed grass was the only indication Maeve had that Alexander was walking right behind her. For someone his age he had retained the skill of moving soundlessly remarkably well. But then of course, the wizard was a remarkable man. Intimidating, but remarkable. 

She idly wondered what he felt at this moment, while the two of them made their stealthy way across the expansive lawn at the back of Malfoy Manor, with Maeve routinely disabling the various hexes and wards designed to keep unwanted visitors out. The hand that held her wand was slightly sweaty, anxious as she was that Narcissa might have changed or added to the protections of her husband's ancestral home, but they managed to arrive at the back door without incident.

Where the Manor was concerned, 'back door' was somewhat of an understatement. They passed through a large archway that opened onto a small patio from which several large wooden doors led to the kitchens and laundry rooms. The instant they set foot onto the dusky pink tiles past the archway, a house elf blinked into existence at the middle of the patio. The creature, wearing a clean, cream-coloured tea towel with the Malfoy crest in pale green, gave them as haughty a look as one ever was going to get from a house elf.

"What is you be doing here Miss?" it asked threateningly, a long finger stretched and pointed at the unexpected visitors. Small as they were, House elves were not to be trifled with; they were magically powerful and very protective of the family they served by nature.

Maeve sneered at the diminutive elf and turned back to her companion. He gave her a hard stare.

"Please…I know you brought it," she said with a tinge of exasperation in her voice.

Alexander transferred his cane to his left hand and reached inside his robes with the right, all the while not once breaking eye contact with the witch. He pulled out a thin silver necklace with an emerald pendant and swung it in front of the bulbous, watery blue eyes. A hint of cruel amusement appeared in Maeve's eyes when she saw the elf's eyes follow the movement of the pendant as if in trance.

"Why Teela," she said with a gleeful expression on her plain face, "we've come to spy on the family, of course!" The enormous eyes grew even wider, if at all possible and Teela threw a reproachful look at Maeve, clearly demonstrating what she thought of that particular plan.

The witch shook her head as if she were dealing with a naughty child. "Now don't be rebellious, you know it is no use…"

Teela looked as if she wanted to argue with that; another, furtive glance at the pendant however and the creature grudgingly bowed for the intruders. In a defeated tone it asked: "You is wanting to go to the Crystal Room, yes?"

"Why yes, thank you, Teela, you're most kind," said Maeve in a mockery of politeness. Her face hardened. "Do try not to do anything foolish," she said harshly, "you know what'll happen if you disobey our orders….."

Teela nodded her head grudgingly, as if unwilling to concede the truth of that statement: her eyes never once left the pendant. Maeve allowed herself a small smile.

"Very good. You may now take us to the Crystal Room. This - she indicated the wizard standing silently behind her– is Master Alexander; he will be joining me."

The little elf bowed again and flicked its fingers. The next moment, they were standing in a long halfway, in front of a round stained-glass window showing a medieval Malfoy ancestor holding an old-fashioned looking-glass.

Maeve turned to the small elf at her side. "You may leave. And don't even think about trying to warn the family in any way, shape or form." She looked pointedly at the pendant, held in front of the large eyes once more as a reminder and then dismissed the creature with a quick movement of her hand. As soon as Teela had disappeared, she took Alexander's hand in hers and placed their fingertips against the looking-glass in the window.

"_Probitas laudatur et alget."_

Beneath her fingers, a bright spot the size of a sickle appeared, radiating white-golden light. The spot grew rapidly in size, soon becoming too big to be shielded by Maeve's fingers and the escaping light spilled into the hallway. As the phenomenon swelled to encompass the entire window, the resulting glow of light likewise intensified, blinding both Maeve and Alexander, as it enveloped them in its brilliant rays. A split-second later it had swallowed them whole and the hallway was left empty, looking exactly like it had before they arrived.

When the light started to dim, allowing normal vision to return, Alexander and Maeve found themselves in the middle of an octagonal room, roughly ten feet in diameter. It had no doors or windows and the only light was provided by the rapidly fading white-gold glow that had transported them there. Eventually, it left them in half-darkness with nothing but a faint, wintry light filtering into the room that reminded strongly of indirect light from grey overcast skies. It was barely sufficient to allow the two conspirators to appreciate the magnificently cut edges where the walls joined with either floor or ceiling and give an impression of the large, crystal surfaces that made up those very walls.

Maeve confidently turned to face Alexander and made a grand, sweeping gesture with her hand. "It is all yours….do your worst," she announced with a sardonic smile.

The older wizard braced himself on his cane with both hands, facing one of the crystal walls. His face betrayed no emotion when their surroundings lit up again after he activated the room with a single name.

* * *

For once, the place that had soothed Hermione's anxieties and provided an answer to all her questions ever since she had first set foot in it, could offer no comfort. 

"What in Merlin's name is going on here?" she asked a little harsher than she had intended. The young clerk closest to her looked up from the long scroll of parchment he was writing on with wide eyes.

"We…we're m-making an in-inventory of the library, Miss Granger," he stuttered, while the young Gryffindor looked around her beloved sanctuary in wonder. In every aisle that was in her view at the moment, she could at least see one of the Ministry party standing on a ladder, making long lists on scrolls of parchment or packing away books.

"An inventory?" asked Hermione bewildered, focusing her look on the clerk. He blushed and fiddled with his quill.

"Mr Gibson ordered us to make an inventory of all the books in the Hogwarts library that could possibly contain clues to the Geminis Fortunae curse," he said with his eyes firmly fixed on his fingers that were toying with the quill. He talked so softly Hermione had to lean closer to hear what he was saying.

Hermione took another glance around and took in the wizards and witches taking books down from the shelves and packaging them with a flick of their wands.

"What's to happen to the books you think might be useful?" she inquired, clamping down firmly on the anger welling up in her lest she scare the clerk again.

"They are to be taken to the Ministry, where Ministry experts will compile all the data on the Geminis Fortunae to further the investigation," said the clerk.

"Mr Gibson is aware, I assume, that The Order of the Phoenix members have started their own investigation?" Hermione asked, barely able to restrain her ire. "And that confiscating all of the relevant texts from Hogwarts' library will severely impede our research?"

Before the trembling clerk could come up with something to say, the instigator of all this emerged from a nearby aisle.

"Miss Granger. I was wondering how long it would take you to show up. According to your reputation you spend all your time in the library, but after you hadn't showed up after four and a half hours, I was starting to think that reputation wasn't entirely justified."

It was said in a tone of voice that, coming from anybody else would have been teasing. The hard look in the see-through blue of his eyes and the nasty smirk on Gibson's face suggested otherwise.

Hermione struggled to keep her composure. "Mr Gibson, what is the meaning of this? Why are you taking away all the relevant texts from our library? You must realise that we can hardly continue our own research into the spell without those books."

"And you, Miss Granger, must realise that the Ministry, as the highest authority in the matter at hand, must have all available resources at its disposal; after all, our researchers are experts in their field. I am sure they will be able to solve this riddle soon enough. And it will no doubt take us much closer to finding out who is to blame for this…unfortunate situation."

He looked at her with entirely too much glee and the young woman decided that if she was forced to stay in his company for much longer, she was going to explode, which would accomplish nothing. So, without another word, she turned to leave.

"Miss Granger," Gibson's voice floated after her.

"Yes?" she countered, trying to keep the tone of her voice pleasant, in spite of the fact that she was speaking through gritted teeth.

"I took the liberty of sending a couple of my clerks to your personal quarters; I imagine you have quite an interesting collection of books."

Hermione whirled around to face the smug-looking bastard.

"How dare you!" she exploded. "You will call them back immediately!"

"I will do no such thing."

"I don't even think your search and plundering of the Hogwarts Library is justifiable by law, you cannot expect to ransack my _personal_ book collection without there being severe repercussions! If you dare even touch one of my books, let alone take them to the Ministry with you, I will make sure you will mourn the day!"

Gibson shook his head pityingly, a glint of triumph in his eyes. "My dear Miss Granger…." Hermione shot him a dirty look. "Headmaster Dumbledore has given his permission to take any books we want from Hogwarts' collection for the Ministry investigation…and that includes the book collections from those employed by the school at the moment. Now… you are the school's current medi-witch, are you not?"

"Mr Gibson, were you not contesting the very fact of my NOT being a medi-witch a mere day ago?" the young Gryffindor grit out.

"Whether or not I think you have completed your training in the Healing arts, changes nothing about the fact that Albus Dumbledore chose to employ you, certified medi-witch or no. Your books are subject to the Ministry's scrutiny. There's nothing you can do about it," Gibson finished with finality.

"You have absolutely no right to do this!" declared Hermione.

"Oh but I have, Miss Granger," said Gibson, smiling victoriously. He turned from her, dismissing her fuming presence as unimportant. Hermione's fingers twitched towards her wand, fighting the urge to hex the despicable wizard into oblivion.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Miss Granger," Gibson said in an annoying sing-song-voice, without looking back. "You wouldn't want your books to get lost while in the Ministry's custody, would you? Their clerks can be so clumsy sometimes…" He looked at her over his shoulder then.

"Now that I mention it… I ordered the clerks to take any books that seemed relevant to our investigation…and of course any and all books that are protected by spells. You might want to keep an eye on them…one never knows; they might try to take your diary."

He snickered at his own joke and disappeared into one of the aisles. Hermione stood there fuming for a moment at the man's extremely annoying attitude. It was clear he hadn't forgiven her for besting him yesterday by proving that their Lucius was the genuine article. Gibson was out for revenge, and from the looks of it he was succeeding admirably in his goal.

She turned in a flurry of robes and stalked off in search of Professor Dumbledore.

* * *

**AN: **Teela is named in honour of my grandmother, who used to be a servant with a very posh family when she was a young girl. Teela is the closest I can get in English to the nickname she was given while she worked there. I love her for being understanding and down-to-earth, for indulging me and my brothers and because I inherited my occasional naughtiness from her :-) 

_probitas laudatur et alget_ translates as: 'honesty is praised and left to starve'


	21. Opposites

**Disclaimer**: I'm wondering how I am going to pay the rent…were I JK I would be looking for a bigger place! ;-)

**AN**. Since I've seen authors respond to reviewers, I am going to risk it and pick up my old habit. Last chapter, where I didn't get to respond to the lovely responses I'd gotten it just wasn't the same. You lovely people are more than half the fun! Let's hope FFN doesn't kill me ;-)

**Porcelain87**: thank you for the lovely, wonderful review. I am glad you enjoy the story so much and hope you will continue to do so. To answer your question, I don't know what kind of doctor I want to be yet. The next two years are mandatory and spent doing all kinds of different specializations, so after that I hope to know more ;-)

**Jaid Ziaen**: hey Melody. Glad you're still as vehement as ever. Don't worry about Gibson…he'll be taken care of eventually. Smirks evilly. Thanks for reviewing.

**Shy-n-great**: thanks for the compliment on the mystery. I work very hard on NOT giving the entire plot away and you basically told me I'm succeeding. Thank you so much, dear sister.

**SeverusSnape'sLove**: sorry about the late update. And don't worry about Mr Gibson ;-)

**Bambu**: thank you so much for the lovely review. It means a lot to me coming from you, since I absolutely adore your stories. (everybody, go read them!)

**Goodmorningstarshine**: haha. Well, I'm glad that at least you didn't grovel ;-) Sorry for not updating sooner, I just don't have the time. Doesn't mean I'm giving up though. To reward your patience: there's a lot of Lucius in this chapter and even some Lucius/Hermione. No kissing though. But soon, I think. Thanks for reviewing.

**Padfootedmoony**: thank you so much!

**Katharina-B**: I have a feeling Draco will come 'round. Might take him a while though. Oh and don't worry too much about Hermione's books. The girl wasn't born yesterday, you know ;-)

**Artemis Moonclaw**: Next chapter coming up. Not soon, sorry.

**Awindsor84**: you're not the only one he's pissing off. He will be dealt with, don't worry.

**Daughter of the fairies**: thank you!

**Song of Rain**: thank you so much. Glad you like.

**Mary**: thank you. As said, there's some Lucius/Hermione in this chapter, but it's very little.

**Queenanneus**: exactly. You get the picture, my dear.

**Saturngurl123**: oh, I'm feeling so guilty for the slow updates! But I'm not giving up, I swear! Hope you enjoy this chapter.

**Chantal J and Sam**: thank you kindly!

**Littlecoporal**: sorry for making people looking at you as if you were daft. I know exactly what it's like from experience. Very glad you think Severus' line was funny though :-)

**JerseySaint19**: thank you!

**TheWolfInTheShadows**: K. will do. Thanks

**Alandrea-the-magical-kitty**: thank you very much :-)

**Antigone**: great nickname! Yes, I still have a couple of things to explain, don't I? ;-)

**Rani singala**: thanks. A lot of people like chapter seven; it's one of my personal favourites as well :-)

**Corri**: once again, your review means the world to me. Seeing that you are one of my favourite writers, getting such praise from you makes me smile every time I read it. thank you so much and I'll try not to disappoint you ever.

**Sunny Moonlight**: sweetie, I have been dying to be able to reply to your comments. Humour me and send me an e-mail, will you? I feel we have much to discuss. Snapeseraphin at gmail dot com

**AncientHistory**: thank you! Sorry about the slow update.

**RavenclawPrincess13**: thank you for the compliments on my writing. I am glad you like it so much :-)

**If4**: will do. I promise. Sorry about the slowness of updates….

**MeowMix91**: yes ma'am! ;-) thanks.

**WildKitty27**: Erin, I absolutely loved your review. Thank you for taking the time to leave such a detailed comment. You're absolutely right on the RW/HG: I just don't see it either. Besides…Slytherins have more fun ;-)

**Althea Grey**: you make some very good points, my dear. You certainly seem to be thinking along the same lines as I am on a couple of things. And yes, I'm still updating. But slowly. Very, very slowly ;-)

**Madam Sorceress**: well uhm…the slimy gits will certainly get their comeuppance. I am setting the stage for it, trust me ;-)

**AquaCherry66**: being the seasoned fanfic-reader that you are AND one who doesn't review regularly I am very honoured to have gotten such a long review from you. I know the song and think it's really beautiful. Thank you. (also for reviewing my other stories!)

**Soulsaint06**: hihi. Got you there, didn't I? Hope you are still reading this and like the next update.

**JTBJAB**: wow. I'm honoured that you couldn't put the story away. I know those kind of stories and it is somewhat rare for a story to grip you like that. Thank you for a huge compliment.

**AKA hummer**: Haha I'm sure we all feel that way about Narcissa sometimes. But don't worry. You needn't dirty yourself by throwing her into the mud. She'll manage to spoil her appearance of being a lovely angelic creature all by herself. Starting this chapter ;-)

**Jocemum**: your compliment means the world to me. I've been reading your stories and I think they are fantastic! (everybody, go read them too!) Much better than mine. So for you to think that this is an awesome story…well, let's say I'm smiling like an idiot at the moment :-)

**Jocelyn**: thank you so much! I really love your stories too and the ones co-authored with your mum, so the above goes for you too!

**Lee Swain**: thank you!

**Ladyerik**: don't worry; as I've said before, Lucius will end up with Hermione. That's after all why I started writing this story: there is too little HG/LM out there!

**Kidarock**: Well, I have this really lovely background on my computer that is a screencap of Lucius as he talks to Harry after the scene in Dumbledore's office at the end of CoS. If I ever need inspiration on how impressively handsome Lucius is I just look at dear Jason Isaacs for a while and the man never fails to inspire me ;-) there is this larger-than-life quality that I imagine Lucius to have and I wanted to get that across. Thank you.

As said before, I am setting the stage for things to start heating up (some more, I know). I have been thinking a lot on the plotline the last couple of weeks (during a particularly boring lecture I was even writing down the motivations and goals of some of the main characters, so that I would have a detailed groundwork from which I could work on future events….that was so Harry-and-Ron-in-History-of-Magic of me ;-)) Anyways, I've come to the conclusion that probably starting from the next chapter events are probably going to follow each other up at short intervals and we'll find out a lot about the curse, how it was cast, who was involved and who the impostor is in fairly short notice. In other words: I think this story is about to be resolved!

Only problem is that I don't have a lot of time to write. I'll do my best to make it as soon as possible, but my education, of course, must come first. Speaking of which, thank you all for your well-wishes on the subject ;-)

Now…on to chapter 21, in which Alexander and Maeve are successfully scheming while Narcissa makes a tactical error.

* * *

**To Save a Malfoy**

Ch. 21 Opposites

Life was good.

Lucius Malfoy (the real one) normally wasn't a man prone to flights of fancy or overly optimistic thoughts, but the situation he currently found himself in certainly allowed for an exception to that rule. To see the fulfilment of a twenty-year old desire, his most fervent wish about to be granted, was certainly enough reason to explain the anticipation and excitement bubbling in his chest.

After it was discovered that they could do nothing to stop the Ministry, they had agreed to take Narcissa up on her offer. As soon as the Ministry delegation left Hogwarts Severus, Draco, Hermione and himself had accompaniedher back to Malfoy Manor.

As he walked beside his wife for a visit to his ancestral home for the second time in three days he couldn't keep the smile from his face. Like a cat basking in the sun, he was basking in the attention from the beautiful blonde by his side, soaking up the cadence of her words, the expression of her face, the little hand gestures he had struggled to remember so desperately for over twenty years. Every time she sent a smile his way he felt his heart rate speed up and his smile settle more permanently on his face.

It was incredible how much difference a couple of hours could make. When she had approached him earlier on the stairs, he had hardly dared to believe that she had really come to him, exactly the way he had imagined it for such a long time. In fact, it still felt unreal.

So it was that he found himself completely unable and unwilling to look away from the entrancing creature that was his wife; he was hardly aware of Draco's presence, had all but forgotten about Severus and Hermione Granger couldn't have been further from his mind. Contrary to his last visit, he didn't pick up on the slightly gloomy air of the Manor; he didn't notice that the roses were planted in dull patterns and that the colour was all wrong. For once, he allowed himself to be happy without reserve or remorse. Today was not a day to dwell on what could have been had it not been for his captivity. When he looked in Cissa's beautiful blue eyes, the present was all that mattered.

And the present was glorious.

* * *

It was quiet in the library of Malfoy Manor. The only sound to be heard was the occasional sound of a page being turned, the rustle of fabric as someone moved to find a more comfortable position and the soft but incessant and impatient tapping of a finger against the side of a book. 

Severus Snape looked up from his book to glare at the offending digit for a moment, before reaching out and stilling the movement by placing his own hand on top of it. Hermione started at the unexpected physical contact, but it took her a couple of moments to figure out the reason. Blushing, she threw her former Potions Master an apologetic glance.

For the briefest of moments, the dark eyes flicked to the far end of the table, where Narcissa had started whispering into Lucius' ear. From the looks of it, both of them were thoroughly oblivious to the goings on around them. The mercurial professor leaned over towards Hermione and said sotto voce: "If you are pretending to read that book you've been staring at for the last ten minutes it would be expedient, I think, to turn a page every once in a while. I don't believe you've read a single word and you're not fooling Draco either."

Hermione's eyes automatically darted to the young Slytherin sitting opposite her, who immediately returned his eyes to the book before him. In contrast to her, he seemed to have made a lot of progress on it. She glanced at her lap in embarrassment.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. It was not like her to be so utterly unable to concentrate, but today had just been too taxing; she felt like she had spent her energy reserve for the next three days all in a matter of hours. Of the three main contributing factors, two were sitting at the same table as she was at the moment.

She couldn't help but watch as Lucius bent closer to his wife to listen more closely to what she was saying to him, a small smile playing on his lips. She felt her heart clench in envy.

"Miss Granger," Professor Snape whispered, drawing her attention back to him, "you are the only Gryffindor in a company of Slytherins. Narcissa in particular may look like someone who only cares about outward appearances, but don't let yourself be deceived: behind that pretty face hides a very clever woman. You'd do well to remember that."

"I'm sorry," Hermione said again, for lack of a better response.

"Oh for heaven's sake girl, stop apologizing!" he growled and returned his attention to the book he had been perusing. In spite of his gruff behaviour the small smile of gratitude that Hermione sent his way didn't escape his notice.

Hermione flipped a couple of pages and once again tried to focus on the book in front of her. After all, it might hold the answer to their questions. It wasn't long however before her thoughts strayed to the couple at the head of the table. A short glance from the corner of her eye showed that husband and wife were still talking to each other in hushed voices.

Gods, this was hard. On a level deep down she had of course always known that Lucius was married, but somehow in the past couple of months and her growing friendship with Lucius that thought had been pushed to the back of her mind. Even by being confronted with Narcissa at the Ministry meetings and in her conversations with Lucius it had somehow never really sunk in that he belonged to her. Not on the level that counted anyway. She guessed it had something to do with Narcissa's initial less than accommodating attitude.

On an objective level, she could see that this was the best thing that could have happened, that Lucius' dreams had come true. Unfortunately she hadn't realised until she saw him in Narcissa's arms that the realisation of _his_ deepest desire was _her_ worst nightmare. She kept remembering how absolutely perfect their kiss had been and now the only one who had any right to kiss him and touch him like that was the woman currently conspiratorially whispering to him. At Lucius' response, the blue eyes gazed up at him admiringly, sparkling with animation. Hermione managed to suppress the shudder that wanted to creep down her spine at the sight, but somehow the accompanying cold set in anyway. Dejectedly she turned the page.

Across from her, Draco Malfoy threw her an assessing look, before ostensibly returning his attentions to the tome in front of him. He hadn't managed to understand a single word he had read since they had all ensconced themselves in the library to do research. In contrast to Hermione, however, he didn't need to be reminded to turn a page occasionally.

It was glaringly obvious she was watching his parents interact, despite her attempts at subtlety. Gryffindors. No bloody feeling for subterfuge. Of course, he himself had almost grinned when he saw the small smile that seemed to have been permanently fixed on his father's face since that morning. Draco Malfoy was glad that Lucius was not worrying for a change.

Much as he rejoiced in his father's happiness though, _his_ mood wasn't nearly as exuberant as the elder Malfoy's. When they'd been walking toward the main entrance of the Manor about an hour ago, the young Slytherin had been sneaking glances at Hermione, while she studiously avoided looking at either the grounds, the Manor and, most importantly, him.

Snape had been rather obvious in his disapproval of Draco's outburst. The young Slytherin didn't understand why his father's long-time friend wasn't more upset about the Gryffindor kissing Lucius. Surely he must know how much his father had wanted to be reunited with his mother? Why wasn't he angry with Hermione?

Surreptitiously he glanced in Snape's direction, only to be met with a sardonically raised eyebrow. Damn! He should have known better than to try and catch his former Head of House off guard. He figured he should keep an eye on Hermione and see how she was handling the situation she found herself in. And maybe, when they both had had some time to calm down, he could go and talk to her. All of them were supposed to stay at the Manor for a while longer, so that shouldn't prove too difficult. Having decided on a course of action, the Malfoy heir picked up his book again and put in some extra effort to concentrate.

* * *

For the last couple of hours, silence had reigned in the Crystal Room. After an initial exclamation on seeing Lucius, Alexander had occupied himself with studying the five current occupants of the Manor intently. His attention initially focussed almost solely on the elder Malfoy, later he studied the rest of the company as well. 

He hadn't said a single word and Maeve knew better than to disturb the wizard with idle talk when he was in a mood like this. After what seemed like an eternity, the older wizard stiffly stepped away from the crystal pane he'd been monitoring and conjured himself a chair. He made his way over, sunk into it warily and leaned back.

"You were right," he said in a tone of voice that still sounded somewhat surprised, even though he seemed to have realised this as soon as he first laid eyes on Lucius many hours before.

Maeve simply nodded.

"Dear Merlin, how could our plan have gone wrong so spectacularly?" the wizard asked of no-one in particular as he gazed up at the ceiling.

"How could we have foreseen this?" countered Maeve. "After the Geminis Fortunae was cast and the double took Lucius' place, nobody believed the genuine article would ever see the light of day again."

"I know that!" snapped Alexander. "Yet somehow, he did." He agitatedly gestured towards the crystal pane in front of him. "He's right there!"

Maeve wisely refrained from commenting.

"What the hell are we supposed to do about this?" Alexander continued after a moment's silence. The witch shot him an uncertain glance, not sure if he wanted a response.

Despite the fact that she was watching him, she was still startled as the older wizard abruptly pushed himself out of his chair, his cane thumping angrily on the floor as he started pacing.

"Our plan failed," Alexander repeated. "It failed and somehow the real Lucius Malfoy resurfaced. I am sure you understand the implications."

At this, he briefly stopped his pacing to look at Maeve, who nodded.

"We need someone from their group, someone he trusts to wield our influence. It wouldn't do to make our presence known too soon," he said thoughtfully. He turned back to the crystal wall that was displaying the five people currently in the library. After a moment's contemplation he commanded: "Engage Hermione Granger!"

The crystal pane closed up on the figure of the brown-haired witch until Alexander could have counted the freckles on her nose if he had been so inclined. He watched closely as his subject absently turned a page in her book, while her attention was fixed on something outside of their current field of vision, if the surreptitious looks from the corner of her eye were any indication.

The wizard turned to the crystal pane next to the one currently displaying Hermione's image. "Engage Lucius Malfoy."

The second pane gave a close-up view of Lucius, who looked a bit dazed and had a small smile playing on his lips. He appeared to be listening to someone talking. Alexander sneered at the image. "Disgusting," he muttered under his breath.

He pulled out his wand and started a lengthy and complicated incantation, of which Maeve heard only little and understood even less. She looked on in interest, since she didn't know enough about the nature of the Crystal Room to understand its full potential or wield its power.

As Alexander finished the incantation, the images of both Lucius and Hermione were surrounded by halos, not unlike what Maeve imagined aura's to look like.

The predominant colour in Hermione's halo was a vibrant red, which suffused into a deep purple at the edges. Lucius' halo on the other hand had a pink core which had ripples of red on it occasionally, but this also gave way to a purple so dark it was almost black. Alexander smirked. Apparently the colours held some sort of significance to him.

Before the witch could ask anything, he began to speak.

"It appears our young Miss Granger here is rather fond of dear old Lucius," he remarked sarcastically. "Tell me what you know of her involvement in all this."

"She was the one who healed him after he was found, even though the Healers deemed him a lost cause. She was there at every single meeting at the Ministry and from what my contacts have gathered she was the one to discover the use of the Geminis Fortunae."

At this Alexander looked up sharply. When Maeve had started enumerating Hermione's actions concerning Lucius he had been sneering condescendingly and muttered something that sounded like 'Florence Nightingale complex' under his breath. It seemed to take him by surprise however that she had figured out the enchantment. He turned to look at the image of the young witch again and there was something new in his eyes that, had it been any man but Alexander, would have to have been respect.

"So she is a smart cookie…" he mumbled thoughtfully. Maeve held her tongue as her companion stared at Hermione Granger for a while longer. When he turned back to her there was a decidedly wicked gleam in his eyes as he smirked: "The most important thing is that Lucius trusts her very much. She is best suited for our purposes. And she's rather distracted, so she'll make an easy target."

Maeve nodded, as Alexander appeared to be lost in devising a plan already, murmuring to himself.

"She will do very nicely indeed."

* * *

Lucius critically looked at his reflection in the mirror, alternately holding up a deep purple and an emerald green shirt in front of him. Both colours suited him well and would go with the elegant black dress trousers he had already donned, but he wanted to look his absolute best for Narcissa. The mere thought of his wife brought a smile to his face as he hung the purple shirt back and started to unbutton the green one. It looked more vibrant and festive than the more solemn purple, therefore suited his mood better. 

As he moved his arm backwards to slide his right arm into the sleeve, a sharp pain shot through his shoulder. Lucius grimaced and put the shirt aside, then brought up his other hand to gently massage his flesh. He turned slightly and angled his shoulder forward, so he could glimpse the angry red scar in the mirror. The salve Severus had made for him had already alleviated some of the tautness of the surrounding skin, but occasionally the injury acted up. He supposed it would always be that way. Considering he had barely made it out alive, it was a small price to pay.

His eyes were still trained on his reflection, his fingers distractedly rubbing up and down the ugly red ridge on his shoulderblade when a small gasp drew his attention. His eyes snapped up and reflected in the mirror he saw Narcissa standing in the open doorway. Her eyes were riveted on his torso, taking in the many scars that cut through his flesh, winding their way over his skin.

Lucius automatically looked at his mirror image as well, wondering what he must look like to his wife. Despite Hermione's and Severus's best efforts, he was still underweight. His muscles were thin and ropy, his ribs too visible still – the stress of the last couple of days not exactly helping. He looked better than he did a couple of weeks ago though. Nevertheless, without clothes to give an illusion of fullness to his body it was painfully obvious he was still on the mend.

"I came to…ask…if you needed anything…" Narcissa said awkwardly. She made her way over to him in a stilted and wary fashion, as if she were unsure of how to proceed. Lucius automatically turned to face her.

"I am perfectly fine, thank you," he replied politely. Narcissa's eyes were not on his face however, but on the scars on his chest. In spite of his back being worse, there was still a lot of scarring there too. His wife seemed to be unable to look away from it. Lucius concluded that for her to be so blatantly staring seeing him like this must have given her a rather nasty shock.

"Oh Lucius…." she whispered, looking at him with teary eyes. The blond wizard felt uncomfortable under her gaze.

"I had no idea…" said Narcissa as she moved a little closer, her eyes flickering from his chest to his face and back.

"You were such a handsome, strong man…" Her hands were moving as if she were tracing the contours of his body, had it not been for the fact that she was still separated from him by roughly four feet. She didn't move to come closer.

"I remember how I used to admire your chest when I was a young girl…" she continued, her eyes now firmly fixed on the scars interrupting the smooth, pale flesh in front of her. "How could anyone do this to you?"

Lucius decided he had taken all he could bear and reached for his shirt, quickly pulling it over his shoulders, painful scar be damned.

"Oh no…you don't need to…on my account," said Narcissa, holding up a staying hand. Still, she again made no move to approach him and her eyes were saying the opposite of her words no matter how hard she tried to suppress it. Her husband sighed.

"Go freshen up, Cissa, dinner is in half an hour," he said wearily, practically dismissing her.

"Are you sure there is nothing I can do for you?" she asked almost pleadingly.

'Yes,' he thought, 'you could stop looking at me as if I were something distasteful and touch me.'

"Quite. I'll be down momentarily," said Lucius decisively. His attempt at a smile failed miserably. Narcissa seemed to have missed his unspoken request as she awkwardly turned and walked to the door, without so much as a pat on his arm. She didn't look back at him either.

When he heard the door click shut, he let out a long shuddering breath and sunk down onto a corner of the large, luxurious bed. He sat there for a long time, staring unseeingly at the floor.

* * *

Draco Malfoy sat quietly in a corner chair in the small drawing room, staring into a glass of fine cognac and listening with half an ear to the soft conversation of his father and favourite professor on the other side of the room. He was tired after their early wake-up call of that morning and his thoughts at the moment didn't extend beyond idly wondering how long it would take the two ladies to come down for dinner. 

Knowing his mother she would look her absolute best. It was an unspoken rule in the Malfoy's home that dinner always meant dress robes if there were guests. All three men had dressed accordingly, even though the effect was rather lost on Snape, since his dress robes were as simple as they could be while still deserving of the label and of course they were black. His father was dressed semi-formal in smart black pants and a gorgeous deep purple dress shirt completed with elegant black robes. Draco's own robes were black, like Snape's, but his were more obviously elegant and the collar was decorated with delicate silver stitching.

As if sensing her son's attention on the subject, Narcissa chose that exact moment to make her entrance wearing dazzling robes of pure white. Combined with her fair skin and hair she looked nothing short of an angel and the Slytherin in Draco had to give her credit for her choice of attire if nothing else. As she had no doubt intended, there was a sudden silence after she had entered the room and the three men looked at her.

"I am so sorry I am late, I'm afraid I lost track of time…" she said apologetically and smiled sweetly at them. A mere moment later her smile faded a bit as she took in the occupants of the room before her gaze slid to the large clock on one of the walls. Her son bent over his cognac to hide the smirk that he knew could not be repressed.

His mother always made sure to arrive just a trifle late on occasions such as these and tonight she had been even later than was her normal routine. It either meant that she wanted, even more so than usual, to make an impression or something unexpected had occurred that had actually kept her occupied. Whichever was the case, her not being the last to arrive for dinner certainly spoiled her grand entrance to a degree. It would be a fair assessment to say that Narcissa Malfoy was none too pleased with Hermione Granger at the moment, not that there was any love lost between the two to begin with and Draco couldn't help but be amused. He was happy that things were looking up for his father, but that didn't mean he was blind to his mother's more melodramatic tendencies. Especially the more obvious ones.

The young Slytherin was so preoccupied with his thoughts on his mother's more ridiculous habits and hiding his own amusement that he failed to register his father's reaction to Narcissa. Or lack thereof.

Narcissa knew no such bliss. She realised that she had made a serious tactical error in failing to hide her reaction to the physical signs of her husband's ordeal, but she had assumed that Lucius could still be enchanted by her appearance and she could work to regain his trust from there.

However, it seemed that for the time being at least Lucius was somewhat immune to her charms and apart from a polite inclination of the head he failed to acknowledge her. He had the strangest look in his eyes. There was nothing for it but to conclude that the first step in closing the rift she had inadvertently created between Lucius and herself had failed.

As for the other two occupants of the room; Severus was hardly the man to make up for the lost attention and Draco seemed to have developed a sudden fascination with the glassware. Seeing that she couldn't take out her frustration on any of the three men, her anger took an altogether different course.

"Does anybody have an idea when Miss Granger will be coming down for dinner?" she inquired coldly. If that chit of a girl thought she could outsmart her, Narcissa, by spending an extra half an hour on her appearance, then she would soon find out she was sorely mistaken.

"Haven't seen her since I left the library," said Draco from his chair in the corner. His mother threw him an irritated look; she hated it when her son spoke in grammatically incorrect sentences.

"She told me she'd go up to change in five minutes when I went to my own room to change," remarked Snape.

"Well," said Draco, "I think we all know where she went." He set his glass of cognac down and pushed himself out of his chair.

To his surprise, his father had also gotten up from the sofa he'd been lounging on.

"I'll get her."

As Lucius left the drawing room, Draco plopped back into his chair, as gracelessly as possible to irritate his mother and took a sip of his cognac. Narcissa was glaring icily at where her husband's back had disappeared mere moments ago. This was not at all going like she had planned.

In another room of the Manor Hermione Granger was so focused on what she was doing that she didn't hear the door opening. Having spent the entire afternoon and the better part of the evening in the library (after she finally coaxed her mind into concentrating on the matter at hand) she was looking rather the worse for wear: her robes were wrinkled and had a couple of ink splatters on them, her hair looked absolutely dreadful, mussed and bound together rather haphazardly and her hands were covered in ink smudges. Intently scribbling away at her parchment, she didn't notice a man approaching her.

"Hermione."

The young woman let out an undignified squeak and almost launched her quill.

"Good god, Mr Malfoy, you startled me!" she blurted, hand pressed against her chest.

Lucius pulled up an eyebrow questioningly. "Mr Malfoy? Why the sudden formality?"

Hermione couldn't continue looking at those penetrating silver eyes and quickly returned her gaze to the books spread out in front of her. Damn! She hadn't meant to betray her feelings like that but she had been startled and had blurted out the first thing that came to mind. She didn't know herself why her subconscious had decided to revert back to the formal 'Mr Malfoy' if not to protect her feelings and maybe because a small part of her resented him for his happiness. Hardly anything she could confess to the man himself.

"It is nothing," she mumbled, "a mere slip of the tongue. I was startled." She chanced a quick glance in his direction, to find him staring at her thoughtfully. If her knowledge of his facial expressions was anything to go by he didn't buy her excuse for one moment, but after what seemed a small eternity he simply nodded and let it go for the moment. She couldn't help but wonder if his eyes really had dulled a little or if it was merely her imagination.

"I assume you lost track of the time?" he inquired mildly.

Hermione took a look at her watch.

"Oh dear Merlin… I am so sorry…" she said, hastily getting up and piling books on top of one another. The action arose from her neat nature as much as from a pressing need to occupy herself with anything that would give her an excuse to not look at Lucius. "I completely forgot about dinner…I just get that way, you know, when I find something interesting to read…"

Lucius stilled both her babbling and her frantic movements by placing his hands on hers. She automatically looked up at him.

"I am sure it will be absolutely no problem if you leave everything just the way it is and continue working on it first thing in the morning," he said calmly, looking her in the eyes. Hermione felt her heart frantically beating against her ribcage at the touch of his warm hands on hers and she felt trapped by his gaze.

"After all," Lucius smiled, "there is no Madame Pince here to scold you for failing to return the books to their proper place. And besides, we wouldn't want to do anything that might interfere with the work of our most accomplished researcher."

What was meant to be a compliment came out as a slap in the face. Hermione abruptly pulled her hands from beneath his and started gathering her notes.

Researcher. Of course. How could she have been so stupid as to think he saw her as anything else? Even with him so obviously in love with Narcissa, she had hoped he at least regarded her as a friend, but apparently it was not to be. When he looked at her he saw the scholar, the scientist, the researcher first and then the person. If he was capable of seeing the person at all... Anger and frustration roiled in her chest as she shuffled the sheaves of parchment with more force than was absolutely necessary.

"Of course," she agreed stiffly. "After all, we wouldn't want _you_ to have to concern yourself with looking for a solution, now would we?" she said bitingly. "It's not as if you'd go mad if you had no part in all this," she said, throwing his own words back at him. She turned away from him, the pile of parchments held to her chest like a shield and started to make her way to the door.

Lucius was frozen on the spot, his expression puzzled and a hurt look in his eyes. What had just happened? Why did she blow up at him like that? And why didn't she want him to touch her? Narcissa's reaction from earlier sprang to mind in vivid detail and he felt his heart clench. He knew he wasn't much to look at with the scars and all and Merlin knew he had his fair share of problems to get through, but surely Hermione wasn't deterred by al that? She had seen him and comforted him when he was in far worse shape and she had known about every single one of his scars for a long time, so why was she suddenly so wary? He brought his hand up to rub his forehead wearily and softly let out a long breath. This was getting too complicated.

Hermione had her hand on the handle when she heard him sigh barely audible. She stopped, hesitated and then looked back.

Lucius stood next to the small desk she'd been using, a hand rubbing his forehead and half covering his eyes. He looked tired and kind of sad standing there like that and her heart ached for him, even if part of his grief was caused by her.

But for once, she was fed up with always having to be the one who comforted all the others. She was tired of being understanding and ignoring her own feelings in the process. Discovering she was in love with Lucius at the most inopportune moment of all had hurt incredibly and much as she still cared and wanted him to have the life he deserved, she just wasn't capable of catering to his needs at the moment.

She bowed her head slightly, turned her back on him and walked out of the library. The door closed behind her with a soft but decisive click.


	22. Foiled plans, part I

**Disclaimer**: this is just stress-relief…am not being paid…get a grip, will you?

**AN**: I imagine you are all quite shocked (although I do hope delighted as well) to find an update which is by now uncharacteristically early. What can I say: I have been thinking about the storyline so much during boring lectures (my current internship is absolutely stuffed with them, groan) that I have a very clear picture about what is about to happen. And I was hugely inspired by all the lovely reviews all of you were so kind as to send me :-)

I at least had a blast writing the next chapter (which might explain how it came into existence so fast) and if I'm not mistaken the lot of you have been begging me for it for quite some time. No, Shy-n-great, no sunset yet, but we're getting there, as always, haha.

No what I meant to imply is that this chapter is HG/LM. All of it. (imagines people jumping for joy, or simply skipping the boring AN to get to the chapter…which would be a great compliment as well). I discovered this morning that FFN has finally followed the good lead of a couple of other websites and built in a reply-feature on the reviews. I promise to respond to each and every one of them, like always. I'll stop my wittering now and get on with it, shall I? ;-)

I hereby present Chapter 22, in which a chance meeting occurs and the finer points of drinking cognac are discussed.

* * *

**To Save a Malfoy**

Ch 22. Foiled plans, part I

The next days relations between the occupants of Malfoy Manor were somewhat strained. Draco, although no longer as angry as he had been, hadn't given up on observing Hermione's every move, especially when his father was also present.

Hermione on her part had thrown herself into the research with abandon and pretended to have neither the time nor inclination to do anything else. She was still somewhat mad at Draco to have doubted her intentions, even though simultaneously a part of her could understand his indignation. She hoped he would approach her soon…she missed her friend.

When she thought back on her encounter with Lucius in the library a furious blush still rose to her cheeks. Yes, she had been extremely disappointed and hurt and mad at herself for falling in love with a married man in the first place, but that was no reason to treat Lucius so badly. After all, he couldn't help her falling in love with him any more than she could. It had been a bit unfair of her to take her frustrations out on him

Now that the damage had been done however, she had decided not to try and repair it. Whether it was because he was comfortable with her or simply out of habit she didn't know, but Lucius had proven in the last week that even though Narcissa was back in his life, when he had things on his mind he turned to her. If the Malfoys wanted to stand more than a snowball's chance in Hell of regaining their previous understanding and close relationship, that would have to change. She reasoned that if she kept her distance, the process might be sped up a bit. Apart from all that it might give her a little reprieve as well. She figured that if she didn't know his innermost thoughts and feelings, it wouldn't hurt so much that he'd never be hers.

So far it was working out abysmally.

Since obviously there were more than enough things that were stressing her out, she would have liked to pick up on her habit of running, but she knew that the property and surrounding lands were extensively warded. Seeing that she wasn't on speaking terms with Draco and had no desire whatsoever to talk to Narcissa more than she absolutely had to there was no way for her to find out where she could safely run, therefore she stayed inside and tried to deal with her feelings of frustration in other ways. It had resulted in many sleepless hours and tossing and turning at night.

She had taken to spending about half the night in the library. Sometimes she continued working on whatever book she was immersed in at the moment while at others she just sat in a chair in front of the fire, legs folded underneath her and clasping a mug of hot chocolate in her hands. She had been caught twice already by Professor Snape, who usually scolded her, gave her a mild sleeping draught and sent her off to bed with the instruction not to show her face downstairs before ten in the morning. Hermione had given him a thankful hug and dragged herself to her bed.

Draco had also walked in on her once, but he didn't speak to her. After he had taken the book he came for from the shelf however he had nodded goodnight to her. Even though he was obviously still a little sore, Hermione had been relieved that apparently he didn't feel the need to yell at her anymore.

The Gryffindor witch sighed deeply while she thought about all of this and rested her head against the wood panelling behind her. Deviating from her regular routine, as far as you could call it that, she had chosen the broad window seat over her usual wingback-chair-in-front-of-the-fire and was presently occupied in looking out at the night sky while letting her mind wander. A comfortable quilt, courtesy of a charming house elf called Teela, was draped around her shoulders and her hands were wrapped around a mug of hot chocolate as had become her custom. The fire in the hearth had all but died, casting nothing more than a faint orange glow in the direct vicinity of the fireplace and leaving most of the large library in shadows. It was perfect for gazing outside.

The lawns and gardens surrounding the manor were of an unearthly beauty at this time of night, their stateliness made less harsh illuminated by the moon as they currently were. She let her eyes wander, taking in the paths and the rose-bushes, the small fountain and the ponds. It was all rather enchanting to her sleep-deprived mind. At the moment, she was rather content to be exactly where she was, enjoying the peace and quiet and not worrying about figuring out all the secrets of the Geminis Fortunae or any of the individuals in the Manor.

The vision of the night sky and the moonlit gardens soothed her to the point of being on the verge of falling asleep on the spot. She realised she probably _should_ go to bed, if not because she needed the rest, then because otherwise professor Snape would catch her up late again. He seemed to have developed a habit of checking the library in the middle of the night these last couple of days.

At the same time she felt reluctant to leave her peaceful little haven. For the moment she was perfectly happy to be exactly where she was. Ensconced in a cocoon of warmth she sighed contentedly and burrowed her toes into the soft material of the quilt where it was folded around her feet.

The spell was rather suddenly broken by the library doors quietly being opened. Hermione was on the verge of speaking up, assuming Professor Snape had once more caught her red-handed when she realised that the figure entering the library was not that of the Potions Master.

Instead of the dark hair that would have been all but invisible in the shadowy room she caught sight of a glimpse of blonde that could only belong to one of the Malfoys. As the figure was briefly outlined by the light spilling inside from the softly illuminated hallway, she could gather from the build that the person disturbing her privacy was male.

The door closed behind him as quietly as it had been opened and the man made his way over to the fireplace. The glow of the dying embers wasn't enough for her to make out his face. It did however show the glint of pale blond hair well past the man's shoulders, giving away his identity just the same.

He appeared to be completely unaware of her sitting in the window seat.

Hermione on the other hand clearly felt the effect of his presence. There immediately was an odd sort of tension in the air and her heart fluttered with anticipation. What for she didn't exactly know, since the rational half of her was still stuck on trying to decide whether or not she should make her presence known to him.

He, like her, had clearly come to the library because he expected no-one else to be there at this ungodly hour. She had no idea what kind of sleeping arrangements he and Narcissa had and quite frankly she had no pressing need to find out, but it was probable he had wanted or needed to be alone. Whatever the reason of these midnight wanderings, if she alerted him to her presence he would probably clamp up and return to his chambers. Somehow the idea of robbing him of the chance to deal with whatever was bothering him on his own time and in his own way had her stomach knotting up.

Despite having decided to keep her distance, she couldn't help the fact that she still cared about him. Deeply. Even now as she watched him as he stood staring at the dark fireplace, silent and apparently deep in thought she couldn't help but wonder what was going through his mind. Somehow there was something sad in his appearance that made her want to get up and wrap her arms around him.

Gods, she almost groaned. The idea alone of embracing him was enough to relocate her heart to the vicinity of her throat and send it into a flurry of hyperactivity. It just wasn't fair. All the man had to do was just stand there and her overheated imagination did the rest.

Maybe it would be better if she did speak up after all. At least then she could escape his presence at the earliest possible opportunity and interrupt the disturbing images that her mind kept conjuring. Imagining him to come up to her and sweep her off her feet with a passionate kiss was definitely not helping in the keeping-my-distance-department. Or at least she could suffer from those deceptively seductive scenarios in the privacy of her own chambers, where she could scold herself out loud and look sternly at her mirror image for being such a lovesick fool.

Her thoughts were once again interrupted by the man at the fireplace as he summoned a House-Elf. The young witch watched as he spoke softly to the little creature. The elf turned around and within moments a comfortable fire was burning in the grate. It popped out of the room, only to return seconds later with an old and expensive looking bottle and a cognac glass.

He thanked the creature with an inclination of his head and it disappeared as silently as it had come. After opening the bottle with careful movements that spoke of appreciation and good breeding, he poured himself a glass and then set the bottle aside.

Hermione could clearly make out his features now while at the same time she knew herself to be still mostly hidden in shadows; the glow of the fire didn't quite reach the window where she was sitting quietly.

Her earlier impression of him being sad or having things on his mind appeared to be correct. Even as he absent-mindedly swirled the amber-coloured liquid in the glass with practised ease, there was a small frown marring his features. Furthermore he seemed rather tired and a bit pale, although it was hard to tell in the yellowish light of the flames.

Had he not been sleeping well? Was he plagued by nightmares? She couldn't even begin to stop herself from conjecturing as to the reason of his somewhat weary look, even though she had promised herself she would let Narcissa worry about these kinds of things in the future.

The effect of keeping her distance from him for the last couple of days was nullified by this strangely intimate moment. In spite of what she had promised herself, she wouldn't have been able to take her eyes off of the pyjama-clad figure standing in front of the fire if her life had depended on it. 'Well done, Granger,' she thought sarcastically, 'your plan worked splendidly.' She wished this whole mess were over, so she could in all decency lock herself into her bedroom with lots of tissues and chocolate and sappy movies until she felt she was able to face the world again.

"It's a good night for worrying."

The quiet words were uttered so completely unexpectedly that for a moment she stopped thinking altogether and could only stare.

Lucius' gaze was directed downwards, maybe watching the flames, maybe watching the swirling liquid in the glass in his hand and the first coherent thought that popped into her mind was: how does he know I am here if he is watching the flames?

She realised she had been quiet too long when he straightened and his eyes met hers. A blush rose to her cheeks when she conjectured on what he might be thinking of her for not speaking up as soon as he had entered and she floundered for something to say.

Eventually all she could come up with was: "It is." Mentally she cringed.

Lucius merely gave a slight nod and returned to staring at the fire. Hermione's mind was spinning. What was she supposed to do now? He had broken the silence, so did that mean he wanted to talk? She regarded the thoughtful picture he made and hesitated. For someone wanting to talk he was awfully quiet himself. Besides she wouldn't know _what_ to say anyway.

She gave an inaudible sigh and laid her head on top of her knees in resignation.

"Are you cold?" Lucius asked, looking up at her movement.

She shrugged. "Not particularly."

"You can have some cognac, if you want." He began making his way over to where she was sitting, taking the bottle and the glass with him. Hermione couldn't help but follow his progress, lifting her head as he reached her.

"I'm afraid I told Teela to go sleep," he said in an apologetic tone as he held out his own glass to her. Half of his face was in shadows as he was back-lighted by the fire, his silver eyes enigmatic.

"I don't mind," mumbled Hermione as she blindly reached for the glass, her eyes locked on his. For a brief moment their fingers touched and she felt that familiar tingle in the tips of her fingers. She averted her gaze quickly as she took the glass from him, still slightly warm from his hands. She was nervous for some reason or other, feeling rather ill at ease. The fact that Lucius was standing not two feet from where she was sitting in the window seat and was effectively blocking her exit didn't exactly help. In an attempt to conceal her uneasiness more than anything else, she raised the glass slightly and took a cautious sniff.

Lucius had been watching her intently the entire time, not speaking until she started to raise the glass to take her first sip.

"Have you ever had cognac before?"

The movement of her hand halted as she looked at those mesmerizing grey eyes again, more like slivers of silver than ever in the pale moonlight.

"No, I haven't," she said, feeling as if she had just had to tell Professor Snape that she didn't know the answer to his question.

"May I?" asked Lucius as he reached for the glass. Perplexed, the young witch handed it back to him.

"A fine cognac like this ought to be enjoyed properly," he said softly. Hermione felt amazingly like a child that hadn't done its homework and was now being told that she could not have dessert.

Lucius seemed to pick up on her emotions immediately and smiled reassuringly.

"If you'll allow me, I'll teach you."

Hermione almost smiled at that. Here she was, in the library in the middle of the night, all alone with the man she was desperately in love with and he was offering to teach her how to properly drink cognac. How ironic.

Taking her silence and the glint of amusement in her eyes as acquiescence, Lucius began to explain.

"Cognac is produced by a distilling process of white wine and it gets its characteristic flavour in the years spent maturing in oaken casks. It is only produced in a region of France called Charente and the quality of a cognac is for an important part determined by the time it has spent maturing. During that process the colour deepens and the bouquet becomes richer."

Hermione was completely mesmerized by the almost reverent quality of his softly spoken words.

"The first thing that is important when drinking cognac," continued Lucius, "is that you choose a proper glass. Tulip-shaped glasses that are narrow at the top are traditionally best, since they allow you to smell the different aroma's one by one. Furthermore it should be made out of fine-cut crystal so you can judge the colour well."

To demonstrate, he held the glass up for her inspection. With a small nod, he encouraged her to take the glass from him. As she did, he shifted so he was leaning to the wall directly next to the window, so that he was facing the same direction she was.

"Now the first step when drinking cognac is looking at it," Lucius instructed. He guided her hand so that the glass ended up at eye-level. Leaning down a little, so that his head was on the same level as hers he continued.

"First you evaluate the colour and the transparency."

Hermione threw him a quick sideways glance when he was silent. He nodded towards the glass.

"Eh…the transparency is good and its colour is eh…deep amber..?" she offered hesitantly.

Lucius nodded encouragingly. "Yes. It is not cloudy and it doesn't have sediments, which would speak against it quality. Furthermore the dark colour indicates that this cognac is rather old," he elaborated.

"Now you tilt the glass, or swirl the cognac in it, to observe the thickness of the fluid."

As Hermione again glanced at him, he wrapped his hand around hers and guided the movement.

"As you can see, the 'tears' are thick and slide down slowly, again indicating that the cognac has matured and is of good quality," he explained in that same, reverent voice he'd been using since they had started this. The witch almost forgot she was supposed to be watching the cognac, mesmerized as she was by him. Hastily she returned her gaze to the glass.

"The second step," Lucius' voice murmured from beside her, "is to smell the cognac. Initially you just hold it under your nose and smell."

At least this time she had enough presence of mind to actually do as he said. She brought the glass within an inch of her nose and let the rich smell of the liquor wash over her.

"What do you smell?" asked Lucius softly after a little while.

Hermione shook her head. "I'm not sure."

"Just try," he urged.

Once again, she let the smell of the cognac fill her nose. She closed her eyes automatically to be able to concentrate more and classify the different scents.

"It smells like wine," she said, "and…flowers?"

"Very good," Lucius practically purred.

His warm fingers touched hers again and Hermione's eyes snapped open at the electricity that sparked in her skin. He was guiding her hands to swirl the amber liquid in the glass.

"Now, tell me again what it smells like."

The soft words, the barest hint of a puff of breath on her skin made her grateful that his hand was still guiding her movements, otherwise the Malfoy family would most definitely have been short one crystal glass.

As she once again closed her eyes, she found that the sensation of his warm skin against hers was much more intoxicating than the scents that were being released by the cognac. She took a deep breath and let the air escape again languidly.

"Hermione?" Lucius questioned.

"This is a bit harder," she said to cover up her lapse of attention. From the movement beside her, she gathered he was nodding in agreement.

"I smell…vanilla," she murmured, "and something else…" She frowned lightly. "I know the scent, but I can't name it right now…it's some spice or other I think…"

"You are doing very well," commented her instructor as she opened her eyes and locked gazes with him automatically.

"Now, finally, the tasting." He let go of the glass and straightened a bit to get a better look at her. "Take a very small sip and hold it in the front of your mouth."

Hermione did as she was told, feeling strangely excited by finally having a sip of the precious liquid in her mouth. Her eyes closed of their own volition.

"Taste it," whispered Lucius seductively, "appreciate the balance between softness and acidity, feel the warmth, the strength of the cognac, the roundness…"

As his breath tingled against her ear, Hermione concentrated on the taste in her mouth. It was incredible, all the different flavours she could discern while at the same time she felt a slight tang. Strangest of all, she thought, was that it did indeed feel 'round' as Lucius had told her. Before tonight she'd never have thought that _that_ could be an accurate description of any drink, but it was. She swallowed and opened her eyes to find Lucius watching her intently, a curious glint in his eyes. Unable to speak, she simply stared back at him, feeling the tension between them thicken.

"Now you are ready to drink it."

Obediently, she took a larger sip and let it suffuse in her mouth, surprised that there were still flavours that she hadn't tasted the first time. She tried to take in as much of it as she could before finally allowing the spirit to burn a path down her throat. She couldn't help but to smile contentedly.

Lucius had been watching her with the same intent gaze he had had all through this surreal nightly encounter. It was almost as if through teaching her how to properly appreciate the expensive liquor he too felt the strange excitement and surprise that was currently bubbling merrily through her veins. Helplessly trapped in impenetrable silver, the moment was dizzyingly intense and entrancing.

Without breaking eye-contact, Lucius reached for the glass Hermione still held in her right hand and blindly set it onto an obliging side-table nearby. The next thing she knew his slightly cold hand was on the lower left hand side of her ribcage, pulling her towards him as he lowered his head to the same level as hers. His lips were firm and warm against her softer ones, confident and passionate and strong and _exactly_ what a man's mouth should be like according to her. Barely suppressing a groan, she realised her hands had already risen of their own accord and tangled in his silky hair.

He pulled back a little, breaking their kiss and regarded her with half-lidded eyes. Hermione didn't know why he pulled back or what he was looking for and she didn't care about it either. After a moment his mouth once more closed over hers and the magic that had been tingling in her skin since the moment he entered erupted in joyous tingles all over her body.

Her lips parted automatically for him when he softly probed them with his tongue and their kiss deepened. Without realising it, Hermione had shifted her position in the window seat, so that her entire body was now facing him. As his arm slid around her to pull her body flush against his a small throaty moan escaped her. This only seemed to spur him on, as their kiss grew more passionate and his hands were caressing her body in a fevered pace. Her own hands were just as busy exploring the smooth expanse of his chest, fisting the material of his pyjama's as if she was planning on never letting him go again.

It was glorious.

For long blissful moments she was aware of nothing but his hot, sculpted lips devouring her own, his long elegant hands caressing her and holding her close and the feeling of his warm, thin body against her own. His tongue had made its way into her mouth and it was expertly caressing hers. The young witch, despite being not very experienced, did her level best to inspire equal pleasure in him.

Her senses were all completely taken over by him: the touch of silky hair…the heat of his body against her legs…the soft caresses of his fingers…the decadent taste of cognac and Lucius on his lips…the smell of expensive cologne…

Her skin was tingling, her heart racing, her lips almost bruised, her hands frantically moving to feel more touch more, pull him closer still… there was a pulsing sensation in her lower abdomen and her breathing was somewhat harsh and interspersed with little gasps or moans.

Hermione had never felt more alive.

Finally, after long moments, the need for oxygen had them break apart again and this time the young witch lowered her head so it was resting against his chest. Lucius draped his arms around her once more and pulled her to him.

At that moment, safely ensconced in his embrace with the rapid beating of his heart beneath her ear, she knew she had never felt more content or safe; at this moment she felt as if she were right were she was supposed to be.

Good God how she wanted this man!

All of him.

And she couldn't have him. She closed her eyes and tried to burn the moment into her memory: his smell, his warm body, his arms around her, the feeling of belonging, knowing it would be all she was allowed to have. Her heart was at the same time nearly overflowing with happiness and breaking miserably.

Watching him and Narcissa together now would be absolute murder…even worse than it had been. She had set herself back more effectively than anyone else ever could have.

The implications of what she had allowed to happen finally sinking in, she couldn't suppress a small sob. Her companion worriedly looked down at her miserable little face and felt his own heart constrict painfully in his chest.

"Why?" whispered Hermione, thick, pregnant tears spilling from her eyes by now.

"Why did you kiss me, when you know…" she cut herself off. The look she was giving him was intensely sad rather than angry and it cut through him like no other emotion would have.

He found he had no explanation to offer.

When he felt her push gently against his chest, he didn't resist and let her go. She let herself slide down from the window seat and looked up at him with big eyes, shiny with unshed tears.

"You always do this," she told him quietly, not a hint of accusation in her tone.

"You chase after your own happiness and if something occurs to upset you, you come to me. Knowing I would never, _could_ never deny you, you take whatever consolation or comfort I have to offer before going back to your own life, forgetting about me until the next time you need someone to make you feel better. Can't you see what this is doing to me?"

She took a shaky breath and turned away from him, unable to look him in the eye now.

"Merlin knows I'd do _anything_ to help you…" she all but whispered, "…but I can't do this. It is killing me …"

Another shuddering inhalation. As she started speaking again, her voice had a semblance of normalcy.

"I don't know what is going on between you and Narcissa, but I suggest that whatever it is, you talk about it with her. And please, if you care the slightest bit about me at all, keep your distance from me…"

At that it seemed as if Lucius was about to speak up, but she forestalled him by holding up her hand, finally turning back to look at him again. Her face was pale and splotchy, her cheeks wet with tears and her eyes red. "Please…" she repeated in a broken voice.

He could do nothing but nod mutely.

With that, she drew the quilt around herself tightly and a couple of moments later Lucius was alone in an empty library.

* * *

**AN**: I'm not supposed to say this about my own work, but I thought the cognac scene was damn sexy ;-) Let me know if you agree, will you my darlings? ;-) 


	23. Foiled plans, part II

**Disclaimer**: I have to get up at 5.30 tomorrow morning… it this were mine, I'd sleep in. I'm an EVENING PERSON for God's sakes! ;-)

**AN**: Well my sweeties, here it is. The much anticipated (or at least so I hope) new chapter :-) I have just finished writing this, so it may still need a little tweaking here and there. But basically it should be correct and to be honest, I am too damn impatient to find out what you will think of it, to keep it to myself any longer.

On another note: I have not yet replied to all reviews. I was planning on doing that, but real life got in the way. I hope you can forgive me and I will try and set the record straight. I am not sure if I am going to be able to do that. Just know that every single one of your reviews brings a huge smile to my face and are the ONLY reason I am still working on this story. You keep me from throwing in the towel. Thank you all so much for that. I love you all :-)

Now, on to the next chapter, in which important discoveries are made and the opposition continues playing dirty.

**To Save a Malfoy**

Ch. 23 Foiled plans, part II

As the library doors clicked shut behind her the sound had a certain ring of finality that made Hermione stop and remain absolutely motionless for a moment. It felt as if she had really burned her bridges behind her now, in spite of the fact that she had tried to distance herself from her feelings for Lucius a couple of times before. With the taste of cognac and Lucius still on her lips, she slowly started moving in the direction of the grand staircase, heading back towards her room. Her movements looked awkward and painful, as if her limbs had just thawed and circulation had only just begun to warm up the cold flesh.

As she reached the top of the staircase, the need to get to her room was beginning to drown out all other thoughts; her vision blurred by the tears that were by now streaming down her cheeks while she gained more and more speed, until at last she was moving at a dead run towards her haven. In there she would be able to hide from the world in general and Lucius in particular, if only for a little while.

The moment she reached her chambers she stormed inside and closed the door behind her, leaning against it heavily with closed eyes. Her shoulders were shaking with the force of her sobs and she wished for nothing more than to slide down to the floor and cry until she had spilled every last tear she had.

Completely unbeknownst to her, a strange brightness started to slither its way into the room as soon as the door had reconnected with the post. Immersed in her sorrow as she was, she didn't notice the strange phenomenon. The light steadily increased in intensity until it encompassed the entire suite and only then, when the force of the illumination was near blinding, did Hermione open her eyes in apprehension.

There was a surge of energy in which the light intensified. Then, as suddenly as it had started, it disappeared and the room was plunged back into the near-darkness it had been in before. The silver light of the moon falling in through the windows created a patch of light against the door where Hermione had been moments before.

The room was empty.

Up in the Crystal Room, Alexander was momentarily disoriented as he woke from a light slumber. He automatically reached for his cane, which was resting against the side of his chair as per usual. Heaving himself up with some difficulty, he poked Maeve with it, causing her to jerk upright.

After a moment of disorientation similar to his own, she too got up from her chair and together they made their way over to where a third person was sitting, pale and splotchy-faced and looking around nervously.

Alexander's mouth curled into a lazy approximation of a smirk as he watched the young witch fidget and his voice when he started to talk made Professor Snape sound positively harmless.

"How kind of you to finally join us, Miss Granger."

- - - - - - - -

Severus Snape was a man in the habit of observing others rather than being the centre of attention himself. Furthermore no-one who had encountered him before he had liberal doses of caffeine administered to his system would ever accuse him of being a morning person. Taking these facts into consideration, it wasn't odd to see him sitting at breakfast, thoughtfully sipping his coffee and talking to none of the other people seated at the table in the small dining room.

This particular morning however, he could have been twirling around the room wearing a costume stolen from the female lead of 'Swan Lake' while reciting the Divination textbook by heart and his companions wouldn't have noticed the difference.

Draco Malfoy had slept rather poorly if the faint circles under his eyes were any indication. Knowing the younger Malfoy something of some magnitude was troubling him for him to lose sleep over it. At the time the blond wizard's momentary meagre powers of concentration were focused on surreptitiously watching his parents and simply staying awake while eating his breakfast.

Narcissa for her part was entirely focused on Lucius. Having decided to try and regain her husband's favourable opinion with the assistance of her good looks, she appeared to have doubled her efforts; despite the early hour, she looked immaculate, robes, hair and make-up all perfectly done. To add to the picture of ideal wife she was doing her best to project, she had instructed the house elves to make some of his favourite dishes and was currently occupied in pointing them out to him.

A pale and bleary-eyed Lucius nodded occasionally as she spoke to him, appearing to Snape as if he were preoccupied with something. If Draco's looks indicated he had slept poorly, Lucius's must indicate that the man hadn't slept at all. The Potions Master wondered what could have had such a marked influence on his friend, who had seemed so happy only days before.

As for the fifth member of their little group: Hermione Granger had yet to make an appearance. This, to Snape, was the strangest of all. Even though Hermione was as much of a morning person as he was, he knew her to be very punctual. During the time that she had been his apprentice she had never once been late, much to his initial regret. On all the days spent at the Manor so far she had started working in the library no later than nine thirty, mostly much earlier.

Currently it was almost ten 'o clock.

The Professor was debating with himself whether or not it was a good idea to ask if she had had an early start, when Draco beat him to it.

"Where's Hermione?"

Lucius visibly flinched at the mention of the young Gryffindor and kept his gaze firmly fixed on his empty plate. Draco pulled up his eyebrow in surprise, ignoring the withering look his mother was sending him. The young woman was clearly not a favourite subject of conversation with her.

Snape however was regarding Lucius through narrowed eyes. Seeing the rather uncharacteristic and vehement response, he was willing to bet that Hermione's failure to show up for breakfast was somehow related to the elder Malfoy's haggard appearance. Maybe he should see to it that he had some time alone with Lucius later on the day and try to find out what had happened between the two this time.

He was pulled from his thoughts once again by Draco.

"Since it appears no-one has seen her yet, I'm going to go up to her room," he announced calmly. He got up from his chair and was halfway over to the door when a voice stopped him.

"She may still be sleeping…she…she went to bed at four thirty…"

As Draco turned back towards his father, Lucius lifted his head to look his son in the eye.

"And how would you know that?" Draco's voice was flat and emotionless.

At that, Lucius again seemed to flinch almost imperceptibly, but Snape who was watching him closely could detect a flicker of hurt in the man's eyes before it vanished.

"I…ran into her…" he started.

"You ran into her…at four in the morning?" Draco repeated sceptically.

"I had trouble sleeping and went down to the library for a drink…maybe read a bit…and she was there."

Before his son, or anyone else for that matter, could ask anything else, he continued: "We talked for a bit and around four thirty she went to bed."

"Right," said Draco, his face tightly controlled. At that, he marched right out of the room.

The Potions Professor suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. He placed his napkin on his unused plate and gracefully rose to his feet. Pulling a small vial from his robes, he handed it to Lucius, whose head was bowed over his plate again.

"Three teaspoons in your tea ought to be enough," he murmured, before he turned and followed Draco out of the room.

The young Slytherin was already at the top of the stairs. Despite being almost twice his age and dressed in his customary voluminous robes, Snape managed to catch up with him before the younger man had made his way halfway down the corridor leading to the guest rooms. He got enough practice chasing after students out of bed after curfew, after all.

"I don't think it's wise for you to go in there now, do you?" he commented calmly as he walked alongside the blond wizard.

"I want to know what the hell's going on," responded Draco with tightly controlled fury.

"My point exactly," countered the older wizard as he placed a staying hand on Draco's shoulder, turning to face him.

"Why don't you let me handle this for now and you talk to Miss Granger when you've had some time to cool down."

"I don't need time to c…" Draco started to interject hotly, but a raised eyebrow silenced him.

"I _will_ talk to her about this," he insisted stubbornly.

Snape merely nodded. "I daresay you will."

The younger Malfoy stared at the Potions Master for a moment, eyes narrowed before brusquely stalking off towards his own rooms; after watching his retreating back for a couple of moments the Potions Master continued on towards Hermione's.

As he lifted his hand to knock on her door, a telltale tingle in his hand warned him the door was warded. He frowned. "Miss Granger?"

When a couple of seconds' time hadn't produced a verbal response and the door was still firmly shut he switched to his silkiest tone of voice.

"Miss Granger open this door now, or I will do it for you."

As this likewise failed to create the desired effect, he pulled his wand from his sleeve and cast a series of unlocking charms.

Not one of them resulted in the unlocking of the door.

After ascertaining that the wards were not designed to harm him, he knocked firmly.

"Miss Granger!"

Silence.

"Miss Granger, are you in there?" He knocked more insistently this time, worry starting to creep into his veins.

Again, he was met by silence.

Seeing that he couldn't unward the door himself and the room's occupant wasn't responding to his calls, he decided to go back downstairs. In most cases at least the locking charms on the door could be undone by one of the Malfoys. A witch or wizard would have to be nearly as powerful as Harry Potter or Albus Dumbledore to be able to cast locking charms that would not yield to a member of the family the house belonged to.

At the same time that the Potions Master was trying to unward the door to her room in the guest wing of Malfoy Manor, Hermione Granger was slowly waking up. Something was niggling at her, telling her she should wake up, but she steadfastly pushed it to the back of her mind. She felt like she hadn't gotten a decent night's sleep in months and she was determined to make the most of the time she had before Draco would come into her room to pester her.

As she tried to snuggle back into the pillows, she noticed her head was in a very uncomfortable position. Her neck was bent at an awkward angle and instead of a soft pillow, there was something hard and unyielding beneath her cheek. Without bothering to open her eyes, she reached up her hand and patted the general area where her pillow should have been. Her fingers encountered something flat and rectangular in shape and as her fingers explored the sides, the feeling of paper and bookmarks greeted her.

With a muffled curse, she pulled the book from underneath her head and threw it on the opposite side of the bed. Sighing, she sunk into the pillow that was now uncovered and burrowed her cheek into it's softness. Ah, that was much better.

She was on the verge of falling asleep when somebody started knocking on her door rather enthusiastically.

"Miss Granger!"

Hermione beat her head into her pillow and resisted the urge to scream. Why couldn't she have a couple of moments to herself?

"Miss Granger, are you in there?"

Recognizing the voice as Professor Snape's she threw off the covers and swung her legs over the side. She padded over to the door without taking the trouble of throwing on a bathrobe or slippers. If he chose to wake her on an ungodly hour such as this, he would have to deal with Hermione Granger, the uncensored version.

To her surprise, the tall wizard appeared to be on the point of turning away as she opened the door. He turned back to face her at the sound of the door opening and seemed somewhat surprised to see her as well.

"Professor Snape? What are you doing here this early?" she asked while he took in her tousled hair and overall sleepy appearance.

"It's almost ten thirty, Miss Granger," he retorted rather sharply, more so because of her borderline disrespectful question than that he was actually angry with her.

"What? You're kidding!" Hermione exclaimed without thinking.

The raven-haired man pulled up an eyebrow sceptically.

"Right," sighed Hermione, "of course you're not. Give me half an hour to shower and breakfast: I'll meet you in the library," she said, assuming he wanted her to continue on their research. All of a sudden she felt rather tired.

Instead, Snape looked her over with something that looked remarkably like concern in his eyes.

"Would you mind if I stepped inside for a moment?"

Hermione frowned. His tone of voice suggested that he was serious and despite the fact that she didn't have a clue what he wanted to talk to her about she opened the door wider to let him in.

He walked over to the window and looked at the grounds of the Manor, stretched out before him for a moment, then he turned back towards her and pinned her with his keen look.

"Why did you ward your door?"

Hermione didn't know what exactly she had been expecting, but this certainly hadn't been it.

"Ward my door?" she repeated dumbly.

"Yes, Miss Granger," said Snape, some of the exasperation she remembered from his classroom seeping back into his voice, "ward the door. You know, casting locking and/or silencing charms on them, as people are wont to do? Why did you feel the need to cast such powerful charms?"

"Powerful?" Hermione parroted, still not understanding.

The professor looked heavenward briefly, as if praying for patience, but forewent commenting on her momentary denseness in favour of finding out what was going on.

"I couldn't break through them."

The Gryffindor witch was getting more and more confused by the moment. First of all, why did Professor Snape feel the need to discuss whether or not she warded her door? Secondly, how come he hadn't been able to get through them? The Potions Master was a powerful wizard in his own right and exceptionally clever at that. She couldn't imagine she could come up with a spell that would keep him puzzled for long. And thirdly…

"I don't remember casting any locking charms at all…" she said slowly.

Snape looked up sharply at that. With a couple of big strides, he stood next to her, his eyes looking intently into hers. She knew him long enough to recognise the look of suspicion in his.

"Professor…what is going on here?"

He shook his head. "I don't know, but I intend to find out." He guided her to sit in one of the seats in front of the fireplace.

"Why don't you tell me exactly what you remember doing last evening and last night?" he suggested as he seated himself on the arm of the chair opposite hers. Neither his posture with his arms crossed over his chest nor his tone of voice left room for debate.

"I finished up in the library at eleven thirty…I went to the kitchens and asked one of the house elves for a glass of warm milk…then I came up here…I went to the bathroom, washed my face and brushed my teeth…put on my nightwear and went to bed,' she enumerated, rubbing at her eyes.

"Surprisingly I was apparently exhausted enough to fall asleep straight away…I must have forgotten to set an alarm and with all the sleep I've been missing lately I overslept. I woke up when you were knocking on my door just now."

She couldn't read anything from Snape's face as he listened to her.

"And you don't remember casting locking charms?"

She shook her head. "I never felt the need to cast them while I stayed here. Besides, you said they were strong enough to keep you out; I was too exhausted to lift my arm, let alone cast spells strong enough to outwit you."

The raven-haired wizard regarded her keenly.

"And you slept the entire night? You didn't wake up?" he asked.

Hermione shook her head. "No, I slept through the entire night for the first time in I don't know how long. I must have accumulated quite the sleep-deficit if I'm still this knackered after a full night's sleep…." She trailed off as she saw him shaking his dark head.

"What?" she asked uncertainly.

"Hermione…" he started in a soothing tone of voice that was infinitely more scary than his normal silky tones that were the nightmare of every Hogwarts student; she knew from experience that when he used that tone of voice, a particularly unsettling piece of information was sure to follow. And it did.

"You didn't sleep through the night. You went down to the library. Lucius couldn't sleep either and he ran in to you there. He said you talked for a while and after that you went to bed at about four thirty."

Hermione was looking at him with an incredulous look on her face. "But that cannot be! I was here the entire night!" she exclaimed.

Snape got up and started pacing.

"I don't know what is going on here, but something is quite wrong, I am sure of it," he declared.

Hermione could only nod her assent. If Lucius really had seen her in the library last night, then why couldn't she remember? For a moment she wondered if anything of significance had passed between them, but rejected the idea immediately. She had deliberately kept her distance from him the last couple of days and she was sure that nothing more than a few sentences could have been exchanged between them.

"What do we do now?" she asked, looking up at him rather helplessly.

"We get to the bottom of this," said Snape. "We need to figure out every little detail, no matter how insignificant it seems." He stopped his pacing to look at her. "Like how you acquired that strange L-shaped mark you had on your cheek just now."

The Gryffindor blinked a couple of times in complete confusion, before realisation struck.

"I must have fallen asleep reading a book," she explained quickly, "when I woke up this morning, it was under my head, on my pillow. It's nothing unusual, I've fallen asleep reading before."

"Despite that I can readily believe you on that count, I'd like to take a look at the book nonetheless," said Snape as he strode towards her bedroom. She heard him casting some revealing spells, to discover whether or not the book had been tampered with. Moments later he emerged holding a dark-blue tome.

"Is this the one?"

"I'm not sure," replied Hermione, "I never opened my eyes this morning as I pulled it from beneath my head." She reached for it. "Let me take a look."

Snape handed her the book and she took a moment to look over the cover, showing a medieval picture of what a dark wizard was thought to look like then and the title of the book 'Geschichten der Dunklen Künste im Mittelalter' in faded, silver lettering.

"I don't remember ever seeing this book before…" she started, trailing off suddenly while she stared at the book, apparently in thought.

Snape waited for her to finish her sentence. As more and more moments ticked by, with her still keeping silent, he grew impatient.

"Miss Granger!" he called.

She just kept staring at the book, as if in a trance. There was nothing indicating she had heard him or was even still aware of his being in the room.

With a couple of big strides, he had crossed the room and was kneeling next to her chair, looking up into her face worriedly.

"Hermione?" he asked, "can you hear me?"

As his hand touched her shoulder, she blinked.

"_Ormonde Sagath_," she said, in a strange, monotonous voice, her eyes never wavering from the book.

It was Snape's turn to blink stupidly as she uttered those words, not understanding her at all.

"Excuse me?"

"_Ormonde Sagath_," repeated Hermione. She opened the book at the marked page, her movements slow and clumsy, as if someone else was controlling them. After she had opened the book, she just sat there, book on her lap, staring down at it but not reading it.

Exceedingly puzzled by her strange behaviour, Snape seated himself on the armrest of her chair and bent over to read what was on the page. After only a few sentences, he leaned closer still, reading as fast as he could. When he reached the bottom of the page, he started to read at the top again.

He straightened and sat completely still for a moment.

"Miss Granger, have you read this?" he asked.

Hermione seemed to shake herself from some thoughts and looked up at him.

"Read what?" she asked in confusion.

He gestured towards the book. There was silence for a couple of minutes as she, in turn, read the page before her. Then her face once again turned to meet his gaze, her eyes disbelieving.

"Can this be real?" she asked incredulously.

"Can we afford to let anything untried?" he responded to her question with one of his own.

"We must tell the others," Hermione said.

Snape nodded solemnly. "This might be what we have been looking for."

"Or it could be a trap," said she glumly. "We still don't know why I don't remember that I was in the library last night…assuming Lucius really did see me there."

"Let's see what the others think, shall we?" A corner of the dark man's mouth curved up in a subtle smirk. "It might be time we paid Mr. Gibson and Minister Fudge a visit."

Hermione nodded, rubbing her forehead wearily. "I'll be down in half an hour."

Snape got up from the armrest he'd been sitting on and pulled a small vial from his robes. "I believe you know the correct dosage for this," he remarked dryly.

She reached for the potion gratefully, wrapping her fingers around his and giving them a little squeeze before taking the vial from him.

"Thank you Severus, for everything."

His lips twitched in a forlorn little smile for the briefest moment, before he swept from the room.

- -- - - -

"Merlin, Hermione where's the fire?" complained Ron as soon as he had tumbled from the fireplace in the reception chamber at Malfoy Manor. He gathered her to him in a bone-crushing hug.

In spite of a looming lack of oxygen, Hermione smiled smugly as she held up a book. "No fire, Ron, just the solution to the Geminis Fortunae."

"What?" exclaimed Harry, who had swept from the hearth right after his friend, "You solved it?" Ron let go of her and Harry took his turn giving her a hug.

The young witch nodded solemnly against his shoulder.

The dark-haired wizard pulled back a bit and looked her over with a critical eye.

"How've you been holding up? Doing alright?" he asked softly. Hermione was quickly reminded of the talk she had had with her long-time friend on one of her evening runs what seemed like ages ago. Harry was more aware of the situation between her and Lucius than she would have liked at the moment.

"I'm just a little tired," she reassured him quickly, stepping back. Before he had a chance to come up with an answer to that, she switched the subject back to the matter at hand.

"Professor Snape fire-called the Ministry about half an hour ago; we're supposed to appear before the Wizengamot to undo the binding, so that it can be officially recorded who is the impostor and who is the real L-Lucius."

Harry threw her a quick glance at her stutter and Hermione silently damned herself for being unable to pronounce Lucius' name without faltering. The emerald eyes narrowed slightly and the young witch prayed that he would not start asking her questions right now as she had no particular desire to explain she had been so foolish as to fall in love with the elder Malfoy. Even if she was going to have to do just that sooner rather than later.

The tense moment passed as Harry chose to drop the subject…for now.

"Where are the others?"

"They should be here any moment now."

There was silence for a brief moment.

"I trust Professor Dumbledore was already at the Ministry?"

Ron nodded. "He should be waiting for us at the courtroom."

"Good," Hermione replied, nodding absently as she traced a pattern on the floor with the tip of her shoe. She was saved from her predicament by Draco appearing in the room, with Lucius and professor Snape following. The three of them had taken great care in their appearance:

Draco looked sharp in sleekly cut steely grey robes that made his eyes look like liquid silver and gave him a level of sophistication that ought to be impossible for someone as young as he.

Snape's robes were black, as usual, but his wide cloak was lined with a rich emerald fabric that matched the high-collared shirt he wore. If she hadn't already realised the importance of this gathering, she would have now: Snape only pulled out his house colours for the most important of meetings.

Lucius for his part, looked the best Hermione had ever seen him look: his shirt was a gorgeous colour that held the middle between deep grey and azure, the grey vest with delicate deep blue pattern a wonderful match. His robes were a dark grey and a black cloak falling around his form in soft folds completing a most impressive picture. The silky hair, falling freely onto his back in one sleek mass only added to the elegance of his attire.

His face was solemn, not betraying any emotions at all. She suspected that the obvious lack of evidence for his supposedly meagre rest of the past night had a lot to do with a certain Potions Master. So much the better: they were planning on wiping the floor with Fudge and his ridiculous hand puppet Gibson and Lucius looking as stunning as he did was certainly going to help them achieve their objective.

By the time her ruminations had arrived at this point, Narcissa swept into the room on a cloud of perfume and looking annoyingly perfect in bluish-grey robes that matched Lucius' shirt to a tee.

Without further ado, they left for the Ministry. Tumbling out of one of the fireplaces in the Atrium had swiftly turned into an almost daily occurrence, so neither of them paid any heed to the sudden drop in noise from the witches and wizards around them. They made their way over to the watch-wizard, but before they could reach him, Gibson stepped from one of the elevators and walked over to them.

"The Minister has asked me to offer you some refreshments while he finishes calling in the Wizengamot in its entirety," he said with ill grace, sparing an especially venomous glare for Hermione.

Not waiting for a reply, he turned back towards the elevator, waving at the watch-wizard dismissively when the man in question wanted to protest. They had little choice but to follow him, although if the dark look on Professor Snape's face was anything to go by, Fudge had better not keep them waiting long.

Gibson took them to a small conference room on the fifth level, similar to the one they'd been using for their previous meetings. He didn't speak a single word to either of them during their ride in the elevator or during their trek through the maze of corridors.

When they had all made their way into the room, he bade them to take a seat rather ungraciously and inquired what they would like to drink. A plain-looking, middle-aged witch who had been waiting for her instructions at the door was sent off impatiently by the unsavoury looking wizard. If the emotions that he was practically radiating were anything to go by, Gibson wasn't exactly in the loveliest of moods today. He kept throwing murderous glances Hermione's way. The middle-aged witch came back, carrying a large trey on which there were a teapot, a coffeepot and several cups as well as some biscuits. She set everything down on a small table in the corner of the room and had started to pour out the coffee when Gibson moved over and started talking to her in hushed tones, his back rudely turned towards the Ministry's guests. He seemed to bicker with her for a couple of minutes and from the looks of it, the witch was not very inclined to share his views; despite her protestations however, he managed to send her away after a couple of minutes with the words that 'they could bloody well pour their own drinks'.

No, Gibson certainly wasn't in a good mood.

Judging from the fact that he was obviously angry about something, but he wasn't being too outwardly hostile to them, Fudge had added insult to injury by instructing him rather strenuously to keep his temper in check. Hermione sipped her tea and took a quick look around the room. Apparently, Professor Snape had arrived at the same conclusion as she had about Gibson, since there was a barely perceptible smirk hovering on his lips. He leisurely leant back in his chair as if he were settling in to watch a good Quidditch match.

As usual, his instincts were infallible.

"I could have you arrested for interfering with a Ministry investigation," Gibson said nastily to Hermione, unable to keep quiet any longer.

Hermione blew on her tea a bit and took a sip, before calmly replying: "And why is that, Mr Gibson?"

"You knew the book that was taken to the Ministry was of no use to us."

"I only knew that you are the one who ordered the raiding of my personal book collection for the Ministry's investigation. You didn't think it necessary to inform me of what exactly it was that you were looking for," Hermione replied calmly.

At that, Gibson seemed to almost choke on his indignation before he managed to spit out: "Whatever investigation we would be conducting, I don't think your personal diary would ever be of any help!"

The man was so obviously furious and Hermione couldn't help but wonder how long it had taken him to break her personal coded charms that protected the diary and how much energy he had spent before realising what it was exactly that he had so triumphantly taken from her. She couldn't help herself; she chuckled.

That of course only served to enrage Gibson further and he jumped up from his chair as if he was ready to strangle her. Immediately he found himself at the wrong end of four wands.

It was with an impeccable sense of timing that Fudge, esteemed Minister of Magic, chose that exact moment to make his appearance in the room.

"Gentlemem!" he admonished Harry, Ron, Draco and Snape, "I am sure there can be no reason to draw your wands on a Ministry official like this?"

Snape sent him one of his bone-chilling looks and said darkly: "Apparently there is, Minister." There was a barely discernible, condescending emphasis on the word 'Minister'.

Fudge's eyes flickered nervously from Gibson to Snape, before he cleared his throat precariously.

"Come now, let's all sit down and have a drink; the Wizengamot will be ready in ten minutes' time," he said with his best attempt at a jovial smile.

Snape pulled up a corner of his mouth derisively, but he lowered his wand nonetheless. The three younger males followed suit, although all of them kept their eyes on the slippery brown-haired wizard.

After some prompting from Fudge, Gibson started to pour a new round of drinks with very bad grace, since the witch that had brought them was nowhere to be seen. Only Snape and Hermione had tea, while the rest was drinking coffee. Just as the now full cups had been given to Narcissa to pass them on to Harry, Ron, Lucius and Draco, Fudge cleared his throat again. He actually seemed kind of embarrassed when he said:

"We almost had to blow off the entire thing, you know. The other Malfoy almost made very good use of a small potions mishap at the Department of Mysteries."

"You mean you almost let him escape?" blurted out Hermione before she could think better of it.

At this, everybody in the room froze and turned their attention to the Minister; Gibson had a coffee cup in one hand and the pot in another, but wasn't pouring, Narcissa still had full cups of coffee in front of her, but wasn't passing them along, the rest of them just sat in their chairs with their faces displaying varying degrees of disgust at the Ministry's incompetence.

"Not to worry, not to worry," Fudge continued in that falsely cheerful voice of his, "Unfortunately for him, he managed to trip and the Aurors chasing him could recapture him."

Hermione just stared at him, aghast. How could the man be so pleased that the attempt at jailbreak had been unsuccessful when it seemed that all that had stood between them and the very real possibility of never being able to prove that their Lucius had been innocent all along was a stroke of bad luck on the impostor's side?

Her emotions were mirrored on the faces around her and many fortifying gulps of coffee were taken.

Before any of them could overcome their momentary muteness on this near-catastrophe, Fudge pulled out his hourglass and pronounced that it was time to go to the courtroom. He got up and mindlessly the other occupants of the room followed.

Would this never end? Hermione thought as they made their way to the elevators. The grim expression on Professor Snape's face was enough to tell her that he was anything but pleased by this new stupidity of the Ministry. Draco's jaw was also set and Harry and Ron still had their wands out and were clutching them rather more tightly than was strictly necessary.

As for Lucius… as the Gryffindor witch chanced one look in his direction she found he was looking straight at her. His face was the emotionless mask he always wore during their hours at the Ministry, but his eyes were swirling with repressed emotions.

Ignoring the strange jolt she felt in her stomach, she immediately broke eye contact and impatiently hopped from one foot to the other until the elevator finally reached the ninth level. As they all filed out of it into the long hallway, she made sure that the tall blond wizard was walking in front of her, so that she would not accidentally catch his eye again.

Hermione was so intently focusing on not paying attention to Lucius that she didn't notice anything else until suddenly somebody harshly grabbed the back of her robes, causing the neckline to cut sharply into her trachea. As she whirled around to engage her attacker, she was momentarily stunned to see only Draco and it took her a moment to realise that the hand that still had a death-grip on her robes belonged to him.

The next moment her brain kicked into overdrive as she took in the strange, glassy look of his eyes and the pained expression of his face.

"Granger…" he croaked out with obvious difficulty, trying to say more, but not succeeding. His grip on her robes slackened.

The next thing she knew she was looking down on a Draco whose eyes had rolled back into his head as she tried to keep his limp body from slipping from her arms and crashing to the floor. She had no recollection of the moments in between.

"Snape, Harry, Ron!" she yelled, even as she carefully guided the dead weight in her arms to the floor and her fingers sought their way to his carotids to check his pulse. She found one, thankfully, but it was fast and erratic.

The black-clad form of the Potions Professor kneeling down next to her, his cloak flaring around him like the wings of a large raven was an immeasurable relief; his expertise a welcome addition to hers.

No longer even noticing what was going on beyond the man lying unconscious on the floor and the one kneeling next to him, she rapidly told the Potions Master what had happened. As the dark-haired professor pulled out his wand and cast some diagnostic charms, Hermione unbuttoned the top few buttons of Draco's shirt to give him some more air.

Her friend's skin had taken on an unhealthy, almost greyish tint and his breathing was fast and shallow. So far, Snape's diagnostic spells were coming up blank. As she moved to pull her own wand from her sleeve, she noticed something strange.

She all but lunged for Draco's neck, almost causing the Potions Master to topple over in the process. The acidic retort he had been about to deliver died in his throat as Hermione said urgently: "Look at this." She carefully pulled down the top of Draco's shirt.

Exactly on the spot where Hermione had checked his pulse not two minutes ago, there were now two fingertip-shaped blisters. At the top of Draco's breastbone some fine, linear blisters could be seen as well.

At that, Snape seemed to freeze completely and all colour drained from his face more rapidly than anything Hermione had ever seen. For a moment she was afraid that the dark-haired Professor, who had looked the devil in the eye and survived, was going to faint.

"Professor Snape?" she said urgently, "what is it?"

Snape blinked stupidly at her, looked down at Draco but immediately jerked his head away as if he couldn't bear to look at him. He swallowed convulsively.

"He's been poisoned…" he croaked out in a tone of voice that was nothing like his usual silk.

"What? How do you know?" exclaimed Hermione.

Snape looked at her then and the look in his eyes was more hollow and anguished than anything she had ever seen. And that was including the look Lucius used to have in his eyes when he woke from a nightmare the first couple of weeks she was looking after him.

After what seemed like an eternity captured in the overwhelming despair of his gaze, in which she started to doubt he was going to answer or had even heard her at all, he finally responded in a tone of voice that sounded utterly defeated.

"Because I made it."

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

AN: this chapter was revised on February 5th, since I had the feeling it wasn't up to my usual standard and some reviewers had trouble understanding what was happening. Seeing that on rereading the chapter with those comments in mind I found that they were completely right, I edited it a bit. Thank you for your help.

The situation Hermione finds herself in, of seeing someone in distress and suddenly finding herself with her arms full of an unconscious person without remembering the moments in between is based on a situation that actually happened to myself. I was in my first year of medical school and we were to practise drawing blood on each other for the first time. While the teacher (on the other side of the room) was explaining the procedure, the girl sitting next to me at the head of the table suddenly stands and announces: "I don't think I am doing too well…" As she started to sit back down, she was already keeling over backwards and in that split-second I realised she was going to fall to the floor. The next thing I remember, is that I am looking down at the girl's face, her head lying in the crook of my arm, obviously after having prevented her from crashing to the floor. Till this day I have no recollection whatsoever of the moments in between realising she was going to fall and looking down at her face. And I'm equally hard-pressed to account for the fact that I didn't fall myself, seeing that we were sitting on lab stools and I can hardly sit decently on them, let alone get off of one in a hurry ;-) But there you have it…..


	24. Freedom and farewell

**Disclaimer**: for entertainment purposes only. No copyright infringement intended.

**AN**: I know, you are all in shock. You probably thought I had given up on fanfiction altogether or my muse had been permanently muted on this particular story. Well…. I have always had a clear picture in my mind of what was to happen before the story could be concluded, but I never knew quite the right order of events and combined with little time to give it some serious thought, that is why I have been stuck all these years. Nevertheless, the unending support and praise from people who enjoyed the story so far have made sure that this story kept a place in my heart and my thoughts and made me want to finish it.

I don't know why, but today I sat down at my computer and, for no apparent reason I can see, I wrote an entire chapter as if it had been brewing all this time. I really hope that this is the moment where I will finally write those last chapters.

Seeing that my last update was 4 years ago (damn, time flies) here's a quick recap of what happened in the last chapter. _After a steamy rendezvous with Lucius in Malfoy Manor's library, Hermione fled to her room, only to disappear from there after a strange magical phenomenon. The next morning, Professor Snape goes to find her when she doesn't show up for breakfast and finds her in her room as if nothing happened with no recollection of the previous night. Together they discover how to undo the spell that was used on Lucius, so that they can prove he is the genuine Lucius Malfoy and discover who the impostor is._

_Dumbledore arranges for them to plead their case in front of the entire Wizengamot, but before they can get to the courtroom, Draco is somehow poisoned and collapses. Professor Snape recognizes his symptoms and the chapter ends with everyone in turmoil, as Snape reveals that he designed the poison that is being used to kill Draco._

All that is left for me to say at this point, is that I hope people are still interested in this story and to thank each and every one of you who ever took the time to review, as it has kept the story alive for me and reminded me that there were people out there who counted on me to finish the tale. Thank you so much for your support; I hope this new chapter will be to your liking and I'd love to hear your thoughts, as always. Now, without further ado: chapter 24, in which Snape behaves out of character and Hermione, as usual, is expected to save the day.

* * *

To Save a Malfoy

Chapter 24: Freedom and farewell

_Because I made it._

The words resounded in Hermione's head, but no matter how often she heard them, their meaning refused to sink in. Unconsciously, she shook her head.

"You couldn't have," she whispered, "you _wouldn't_."

Her Potions Professor's ashen face contorted in agony for a moment in response to her words. Then, as quickly as his intense despair had appeared, it disappeared leaving his face turned into an angry snarl, the likes of which she hadn't seen directed at her in all her years at Hogwarts.

"Don't be any more idiotic than you can help, little girl," he spat at her with undisguised hatred, "I _would_ and I _have_!"

Recoiling from the unexpected attack, Hermione found she was unable to do anything but watch as the man she had come to view as one of her closest friends, got to his feet and without so much as another word to anyone, stormed off in the direction of the elevators. Dumbly, she stared after him as random people in his path scattered to the side, most of them young enough to be acquainted with the Slytherin's infamous temper.

Only when she felt a cool hand being placed on her wrist, did she manage to tear her gaze away from the dark head that was quickly being swallowed by the crowds. Looking into the pleading grey eyes of Lucius Malfoy, she needed another moment to regain her composure.

"I can't believe he walked out on Draco," she said, shocked.

"Hermione," Lucius pleaded, ignoring everything that had happened between them and which was unresolved still in his anxiety for his only son.

The young Gryffindor glanced at her other friend, still lying unconscious and unmoving on the black-tiled floor and pushed her worries about the Potions Professor to the back of her mind for the time being.

"Professor Dumbledore?" she called, "we need your assistance."

* * *

Hermione took a deep breath through her nose and noiselessly released it as slowly as she could. She was standing in the hallway outside of the courtroom where he entire Wizengamot was waiting for her testimony on their newest research on the Geminis Fortunae. Lucius was stood a little ways away from her. She didn't know how he was holding up, since she hadn't dared to look at him after they'd been left alone by the Ministry official who brought them here.

She was worried about Draco.

After her plea for help, Professor Dumbledore had made arrangements for Draco to be transferred to Hogwarts, where St Mungo's healers would be waiting for him. Harry and Ron had accompanied their friend to protect him from further harm and Dumbledore himself would go after his wayward Potions Master as soon as Draco was settled and receiving the care he needed. Per Hermione's instructions, nobody was to touch the Slytherin without the use of a cushioning charm, since touch seemed to exacerbate the formation of the blisters that were appearing all over Draco's skin.

Narcissa was travelling to Hogwarts as well, seeing that she had been distraught when confronted with her son's condition and was in no shape to be of any help to anyone.

With Snape long gone and Fudge and Gibson unwilling to excuse them from their appointment with the Wizengamot, not to mention the pressure created by the fake Malfoy's near-escape, that left Lucius – who had to be present in order to undo the enchantment – and, of course, Hermione to present their case.

Picturing the upcoming meeting in her mind this morning, when they were about to leave for the Ministry, she had envisioned herself passionately defending Lucius before Professor Dumbledore, with the silent but oh so important approval of Severus Snape and in front of her three best friends in the world.

In reality, she was standing here alone with a man she no longer felt comfortable with and half her brain was occupied with wondering if Draco would still be alive by the time they got back to Hogwarts.

She held her hands out in front of her. Seeing her noticeably trembling fingers she cursed softly and quickly folded her arms in front of her chest.

"I have every confidence in you."

She looked to her left, where Lucius was now leaning against the wall next to her, his expression sincere if worried. Not for the first time today, Hermione wondered if anything of significance had happened in the library between them last night. Before she could think better of it, she blurted: "Are we still even friends?"

She thought an expression of hurt flitted across his face, but he schooled his features so quickly that she couldn't be sure. Just as he drew breath to respond, the door behind him opened and the same Ministry official that had brought them there announced loudly: "The Wizengamot of the British Ministry of Magic has decided to hear your plea. Please step forward to advocate your case."

Taking another deep breath, she schooled her features to portray a calm confidence she was very far from feeling as she stepped forward towards the open door. The light from inside the courtroom was momentarily blinding and she hesitated as her eyes got used to its intensity. As soon as she was able to see clearly, however, she wished she wasn't. The courtroom seemed much larger than the last time she had been here and since this was the Ministry of Magic, she wouldn't be surprised to discover that it actually was. Chancing a quick glance at the rows upon rows of plum-robed witches and wizards looking down on her from their high perches, Hermione had to suppress the urge to turn around and run from the room.

As she stood, trying to regain her composure and ignore the nausea that was building in her stomach, a cool hand was placed against the small of her back, grounding her. It was just a simple touch, but it brought back all her reasons for doing what she was about to do: an innocent man had been made to suffer for years, his son was in danger, his marriage was barely holding up and his best friend had made the biggest mistake of his life in his absence. No matter if they were friends or not, Hermione could not allow such a travesty to continue for another moment.

Straightening her shoulders, she walked to the middle of the room, next to the witness chair in which the impostor was already restrained and looked up at the three figures seated in the three most important seats and found unexpected support there.

"Good afternoon, Miss Granger. In Albus's absence, I will preside over this hearing, if that is agreeable to you?" asked Amelia Bones.

Hermione, after exchanging a quick look with Lucius, couldn't help the small smile as she replied: "That is agreeable to both Mr Malfoy and me, madam Bones."

Amelia nodded briskly. "Very well, proceed."

Hermione nodded, but before she started explaining their case, she let her eyes sweep over the members of the Wizengamot slowly and deliberately. No one spoke as the silence continued, some even fidgeting as her intense gaze passed by them. Finally her gaze came to rest on the bench right in front of her, where Amelia Bones sat next to the Minister and that dratted Gibson.

Hermione looked over her right shoulder at the impostor Lucius. He sneered at her, his eyes cold and his expression haughty. Then she looked over her left shoulder, to where Lucius was sitting – without restraints and in a normal chair, conjured for him by the Ministry official – and gave him a slight nod. He returned the gesture solemnly and Hermione looked at the floor in front of her feet for a second, in a last moment of contemplation.

Slowly she raised her head and began to speak.

"Madam Bones, Minister Fudge, esteemed members of the Wizengamot….you may have noticed that Lucius Malfoy has inexplicably acquired an identical twin."

There was a smattering of laughter in response to her remark and Hermione felt her nerves leave her as she smiled briefly in response.

"I am afraid the cause of this is no laughing matter, however, as at the heart of this startling phenomenon lies a heinous crime," she stated, eyes flashing.

"Imagine a man of power and wealth, a man whose family has always balanced on the line between the forces of good and evil, a man who was approached by the late Lord Voldemort to join his ranks, at a time when his supporters were few and his foothold within the Pureblood community non-existent."

She paused briefly to glance around at all the faces turned towards her in rapt attention.

"Imagine…that man saying 'no'." To her satisfaction, a ripple of shock went through her audience.

"Based on the testimony of this man," she walked towards Lucius, pointing her arm in his direction to emphasize her point, "whom we'll prove to be the real Lucius Malfoy in the course of this trial, that is what happened some twenty years ago.

The Dark Lord, presumably none-too-pleased with the person who was thwarting his plans to gain more power and influence through the old wizarding families of Great Britain, devised a scheme to abduct Lucius Malfoy, forcibly obtain his blood and substitute him by one of his loyal servants in disguise. A servant who was only too happy to rejoin the ranks in his new identity; following this example by the head of one of Britain's oldest and most influential families, the number of Lord Voldemort's minions increased exponentially and his power reached a theretofore unimaginable level.

We believe that all of this was made possible through the use of an ancient and long-forbidden dark spell, the Geminis Fortunae. Making use of this spell, Lord Voldemort unequivocally altered the appearance of one of his loyal followers to that of Lucius Malfoy, allowing his appearance to alter with age as their victim's would. The effect of this particular spell wouldn't lessen in time, it didn't need to be recast to remain effective and there is no way to reverse it except by either undoing the binding that is part of the spell or by the victim's death.

After Voldemort's fall at the hands of Harry Potter, the impostor retained his identity as Lucius Malfoy and the moment his master returned, he rejoined him in his battle to rid the wizarding world of Muggleborns and Half-bloods alike. This continued until Voldemort was once again defeated by Harry Potter and Lucius Malfoy the Death Eater was captured by this Ministry.

What happened in the meantime to the real Lucius Malfoy, you may ask? After robbing him of his blood to create a potion for the binding ritual of the Geminis Fortunae and the successful transformation of the impostor Lucius, the real Lucius was incarcerated in the deepest darkest hole the dark lord could find, far underneath his castle, where powerful magic kept him from escaping. He was tortured on a regular basis, but never allowed to die, because that would have undone the spell and the impostor would have been found out.

So while his friends and family thought there was nothing amiss, believed him to have become a follower of the Dark Lord, saw him becoming a little more cruel and a little more cold-hearted year by year, the real Lucius spent his days either being tortured or barely conscious."

Hermione fell silent, her chest heaving with the exertion of her passionate plea and looked at the shocked and slightly nauseated expressions of the wizards and witches surrounding her. Nobody said a word as she slowly moved to stand in front of the impostor Lucius, her back to him and allowed her emotions to show in her eyes.

"We, meaning Professor Severus Snape and myself, have investigated the Geminis Fortunae and we think we have found a way to undo the binding. Madam Bones, as Chief Sorceress of the Wizengamot in the absence of Albus Dumbledore, I ask your permission to try and undo the binding in front of the assembled members, so that in future it can never be questioned that the Geminis Fortunae was used and that Lucius Malfoy was its victim."

There was a moment's silence, before Madam Bones cleared her throat and declared somewhat hoarsely: "You may proceed, Miss Granger."

Hermione bowed her head stiffly. "Thank you, Chief Sorceress."

She turned smartly on her heel and pulled her wand from her sleeve as she approached the impostor Lucius. He sneered at her, his fingers clenching around the armrests of the chair he was secured to and Hermione felt he would have hurt her if he could have.

"Don't worry," she told him coldly, "I won't harm an unarmed opponent."

Before he had a chance to respond, she swished her wand and said clearly: "Accio Lucius Malfoy's wedding band."

The slim and deceptively simple, white-gold ring with a single emerald at it's centre flew from it's place on the impostor's ring finger to the palm of Hermione's outstretched hand. Contrary to what they had first believed, nothing happened. The two men still resembled each other as much as one drop of water resembled another.

In case there had been any doubts as to the correctness of her and Snape's supposition that this was likely the only item Malfoy had been allowed to keep on his person at all times, despite his incarceration however, the ugly snarl on the impostor's face must have erased them. As she closed her fingers around the seemingly insignificant piece of jewellery that signified the bond between Lucius Malfoy and Narcissa Black, Hermione was absolutely certain that she held the artefact that had been used to enforce the Geminis Fortunae. She put her wand back in its holster.

The sound of her heels on the tiled floor as she made her way over to where Lucius sat were incredibly loud as the Wizengamot in its entirety seemed to be holding its breath.

His grey eyes were locked on hers from the moment she turned towards him and as she closed the relatively small distance between them, it seemed to take an eternity for her to reach him. She scarcely dared blink for fear of missing any of the myriad emotions swirling in his eyes as he stared at her and she wondered if her own eyes were overflowing with feeling like his were at the moment.

Later she would be unable to explain what made her do it, but as she reached the chair he was sitting in, she kneeled down in front of him. He made as if to protest, but a single look from her was enough to silence him. She wasn't doing this as some form of servitude; she just felt that kneeling down in front of his chair was the best way to give him her undivided attention during a moment he had been waiting for for over twenty years.

"Give me your hand," she said softly as she held out her left hand to him. Silently he stretched out his left arm, so that she could grasp his hand. Hermione looked down at the slim band she held in the fingers of her right hand and fleetingly thought that it was quite ironic, to her at least, that the item that would eliminate his doppelganger and give him his freedom, was simultaneously a symbol of the fact that his life was already bound to that of Narcissa and as such, she would never be free to pursue the single most wonderful man she had ever known.

As she looked back up at him, her eyes were shimmering with unshed tears and her voice was shaky, if determined. Lucius seemed likewise choked up and his silver eyes were shining suspiciously as he looked down at the woman who had, in so many ways, been his salvation.

"Lucius Malfoy…"

Hermione's slightly trembling fingers slid the ring onto his ring finger in an absurd parody of a wedding ceremony that made her want to laugh at its ridiculousness and cry because she would never ever put a wedding ring on his finger again after today. But there wasn't a doubt in her mind that it was the right thing to do.

"….I give you your freedom."

* * *

**AN:** Please let me know what you think: it'll motivate me while I write the next chapter ;-)


	25. Old friends, new enemies

**Disclaimer**: the usual non-legally significant blah-blah-blah.

**AN**: Hello everyone,

I have rewritten the following chapter a couple of times and actually thought it would end a little further down the road than it actually did. Sometimes while writing I am surprised by the perfect ending to a chapter….it's going to be another cliffhanger though, so I'm sure you'll all love to hate me for it ;-)

I also want to take this opportunity to thank all of you who have reviewed: it keeps me going and gives me the tenacity I need to finish this story. Whenever I think I'll never get it done, knowing that there are people out there who are dying to hear the ending, I know I cannot give up.

Thank you so much for all your kind comments.

Well, that's it for now. I am really excited to hear what you think of the upcoming chapter, so I'll let you get to it. I present: chapter 25, in which Hermione and Lucius floor the Wizengamot and Severus Snape floors Hermione.

* * *

To Save a Malfoy

Chapter 25: Old friends, new enemies

"_Lucius Malfoy…I give you your freedom."_

The tears that had been threatening finally spilled over as she felt the ring slide home on his finger. She couldn't help her gaze locking on his solemn silver eyes, her right hand lightly keeping a hold of his left.

Seconds passed.

In confusion, Hermione looked down at the seemingly unobtrusive piece of jewellery resting around his finger; why wasn't anything happening?

Almost as soon as the thought entered her mind, she felt a tingle where her fingers grasped his hand and consequently, the ring. It was vaguely reminiscent of the time she had cut off a piece of the impostor's hair. Only now she remembered that then too, it had taken a little while for the enchantment to crumble. The unleashed magic trickling into her fingers felt very similar, but it was neither as subtle, nor as quick in disappearing as it had been then.

It was slowly inching from where her fingers touched his, to encompass her entire hand and then, as if some unseen barrier was crossed, it suddenly exploded outward, encompassing her entire being. She heard Lucius' uncontrolled exhalation, as if the air had been forced from his lungs in response to the magical phenomenon.

Her head rose up swiftly wanting to check him for any signs of discomfort, but what she saw took her breath away. Lucius had closed his eyes, his countenance as serene as she had ever seen it. Some unknown force was gently moving his hair, as if a pleasant breeze was playing with it. What caught her attention though was the way his skin seemed to glow with a strange luminescence, making him look almost unbearably beautiful.

She was quite aware of her mouth dropping open in sheer amazement but could do nothing to prevent it from happening. Hermione Granger had never seen anything more beautiful in her life, up to and including the one time she had seen a unicorn in the forbidden forest.

Then suddenly, Lucius threw back his head, his mouth opening as wide as it could with a soundless cry, his features twisting in obvious pain. His left hand reflexively gripped hers almost painfully, his other hand clamping around her left shoulder. His skin was giving off heat as if he was burning up with a fever, his breathing harsh and ragged as if he had just run a mile.

Without thinking, she placed her left hand over his left, so that the hand with the ring was now clasped between both of hers.

It felt like a circuit being closed and she involuntarily closed her eyes as images rose in her mind, one right after the other, too fast to understand them properly before the next one arrived. She caught glimpses of a dark cloak billowing in the wind; torn robes on a muddy surface; a toddler looking up at her with thick tears in his impossibly large eyes next to a broken statue; a woman's leg, pale and streaked with blood hanging over the edge of a table; thrusting herself into a blond woman draped over a dresser; a small clearing in a forest, bathed in moonlight; the same blonde woman bending down to kiss her; a flash of blood-red eyes, a streak of green, a feeling of power and lust welling inside her feeling foreign and completely her own all at the same time. In spite of this, she was also aware of Lucius' hand clasped between her own, his eyes wide and unseeing in front of her and somebody screaming in the background.

As suddenly as the images had started, so abrupt was their absence and Hermione found herself reeling from them. Still, her thoughts first and foremost focused on the man in front of her, wanting to make sure he was unharmed.

She hardly had the time to realise that he was not, before he toppled forward and off of the chair he'd been sitting on. She could do nothing but cushion his fall as best she could, which is how she found herself on the floor of courtroom ten with the Wizengamot in its entirety watching as she cradled Lucius Malfoy's head against her shoulder as he lay across her lap.

Carefully, she lowered him to the floor, violently suppressing the images of Draco in a similar position not so long ago. Ascertaining that he was still breathing and appeared to have merely fainted was the work of seconds and she couldn't suppress the relieved sigh that escaped her. She didn't understand what had happened: none of the sources they consulted mentioned anything about the unbinding being painful for the victim, let alone about it rendering him unconscious; she was at a loss how to explain what had gone wrong.

She was vaguely aware of the murmuring around her rising in volume and ascribed it to what had just taken place. A quick look around while she shifted position to allow the blood back into her legs however showed that nobody was looking at her and Lucius, instead focusing on something behind her back.

Turning, she understood.

A tall, stocky wizard with unruly dark brown hair and blue eyes was looking at her with hatred in his eyes. His mouth was distorted into a sneer and Hermione thought nonsensically that the expression was much more effective on a classic, aristocratic face like Lucius'.

Dazed, she climbed to her feet and took a few steps closer to the spot where the defendant was strapped to his chair, hardly believing the fact that just minutes ago this man had looked exactly like Lucius.

A groan brought her attention back to the original – and now only – Lucius Malfoy as he laboriously opened his eyes and blinked up at the strange sight that met his eyes.

"Lucius!" Hermione exclaimed as she moved towards him, her hands automatically reaching for both of his, "are you alright?"

His attention was captured by the defendant as he got to his feet and it took him a moment to refocus his gaze onto the young woman standing in front of him.

When he finally did, there was a peculiar tone to his voice as he answered: "I am fine."

Like her, he walked slowly towards the man restrained in the middle of the room. If it hadn't been for the fact that he was wearing the same Azkaban robes as the impostor had – not to mention the fact he was magically restrained to his chair – it would have been impossible to guess that up until recently, he had been Lucius Malfoy too.

All of a sudden, the realization hit Hermione like a fist to the stomach: if it hadn't been for them more or less accidentally stumbling on the real Lucius after Voldemort's defeat, they never would have known. Nobody would have questioned Lucius Malfoy's sudden disappearance as Voldemort's second-in-command would have undone the binding or the real Lucius would have died…..the impostor could have gotten away scot-free….

She had never seen the enormity of the crime any clearer than right at that moment.

It made her sick to her stomach to the point where she thought she might actually vomit. As she raced from the courtroom headed for the nearest loo, the last thing she saw before the doors fell closed behind her was Lucius hauling back and, with a look of grim satisfaction, punching the impostor squarely in the jaw.

* * *

It was a rather subdued and silent pair that Flooed into Dumbledore's office later that day. Despite the fact that they had finally succeeded in undoing the binding of the Geminis Fortunae, there were still too many matters weighing them down for a truly celebratory mood.

After they had given Professor Dumbledore a succinct report on the happenings at the Ministry, he returned the favour by informing them that Draco had been installed in the hospital wing, his condition for now relatively stable, although more and more blisters had appeared all over his body. He had regained consciousness shortly after their party arrived at Hogwarts and the first words out of his mouth were to enquire whether or not Hermione had succeeded.

Meanwhile, Professor Snape had apparently locked himself into his dungeon laboratory. He flat-out refused to come out or even speak to anyone, up to and including Dumbledore himself. Being the current Headmaster, Dumbledore could have forced the issue, since Hogwarts would always yield to his command, but he wanted to give his Potions Master what time he could to sort through this on his own.

Hermione's heart clenched as she recalled the anguished look on the professor's features when he realised what was happening to Draco. She couldn't imagine what it must feel like for him, being indirectly responsible for a dear one's suffering like that. An involuntary shudder ran down her spine as she realised that it couldn't be the first time something like this happened to the dark Potions Master.

"I'd like to see, Draco."

Lucius' softly-voiced request broke into her thoughts. Dumbledore was already nodding and holding out a hand to indicate Lucius should precede him, when Hermione halted their progress.

"I'll go down to the dungeons and see if there's anything I can do to help Professor Snape."

The Headmaster threw her an assessing glance. "I am not sure that is a wise idea, Miss Granger," he said cautiously.

"I'm quite sure it isn't, but someone has to go down there and make sure he doesn't do himself any harm," Hermione countered much more calmly than she felt.

The Headmaster gave an approving nod at that, before he preceded Lucius to Draco's room.

Hermione stared after the two wizards until they disappeared from view around a corner, before turning around and moving towards the dungeon steps.

Her feet were swift and sure as she made her way through the labyrinthine corridors of the dungeons, coming to a halt only when she was faced with the door that opened into Professor Snape's private laboratory.

Removing her wand from her sleeve, she cast a series of spells, revealing the wards he had activated to keep unwanted company out.

She winced. "Well, I guess he really doesn't want company then," she muttered to herself, even as she started dismantling the first of the wards.

Ten minutes later she had undone about half of his wards, she was exhausted, cranky and an unfamiliar feeling of foreboding was starting to envelop her.

"Severus!" she yelled, frustrated. She kicked the door for good measure. Fortunately for her, Snape was exceptionally good at defensive magic - despite all his sniping on 'foolish wand-waving'. His wards recognized her kick was not an attempt to enter the rooms beyond, otherwise the result would have been quite unpleasant.

She did succeed in her original goal though: the door was yanked open and a furious Severus Snape glared her way.

"If you know what's good for you, you will leave now" he snarled. His temper didn't appear to have improved much since she last saw him.

"I came to see if you needed any help," she said as calmly as she could manage, bravely locking gazes with him.

"I couldn't think of anything I'd need help with at the moment, least of all from a silly little girl!" he sneered, starting to close the door.

"Oh please, _Severus_," she sighed in annoyance, putting a deliberate emphasis on his given name and enjoying the way his face darkened even further, "have a care with the 'silly little girl' comment, or you'll wear it out!"

As she was speaking, she pushed her way past him into the laboratory where she had spent so many hours working alongside him, benefiting from his expertise, sharpening her wit against his.

The action left him spluttering with rage.

"This is the antidote?" she breathed in awe, as she neared the workbench. On top of it a large pewter cauldron rested, the flame beneath it extinguished; the potion inside was glutinous and so dark a green that it appeared black in colour. Where the light hit, it gleamed an iridescent pink.

Hermione couldn't help but find it mesmerizing. Yet as she stood next to the cauldron with its cooling fumes hitting her face, the ominous feeling that had crept up on her when she stood in front of his door hit her again, more strongly this time.

There was something darkly seductive about the potion sitting so innocently before her and almost without conscious thought she picked up the ladle lying next to it.

Fast as a snake, Snape's hand shot out to pull her away from the potion, his hand plucking the ladle from her nerveless fingers.

Hermione had gone pale. "What the bloody hell is in that cauldron?" she whispered, knowing with every bone in her body that it wasn't an antidote.

The Potions Master drew himself up to his full height, his face blank and inaccessible.

"Stupefy," he whispered and as the red light sped towards her, heading for the centre of her chest, Hermione only had time to wonder how his wand had come to be in his hand unnoticed before darkness engulfed her.


End file.
